Prey for Reign
by Shawn30
Summary: Chapter 2.  As if barely surviving a harrowing fiery plane crash wasn't enough, the Scoobie Gang must contend with Willow's sudden loss of power, a mysterious betrayal, hidden agenda's, and an army of the undead when they arrive in Monte Carlo.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: "Prey for Reign"  
Chapter (1/3) set in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight comic book universe.  
Written by: Shawn**

**Summary: While Buffy struggles with what her head and heart are telling her, the Vampire Nation and the Wolf Pride are about to strike a deal that will doom the world forever.**

**Rating: M for violence, language, and sensual situations.  
Category: Drama/Action Adventure/Romance **

**Characters: Buffy, Xander, Dawn, Willow, Faith, Renee, Giles, Andrew, and Robin Wood. Original characters as well.**

**Ship: Buffy/Xander**

**Timeline/Spoilers: The entire BtVS series and the first four issues of the new BtVS comic book for season 8. The entire "Long Way Home" series.**

**Email: Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns everything!**

**Authors Notes 1: Basic BtVS comic book universe knowledge for those who haven't read it is that the Scoobies are working out of a castle in Scotland and have rebuilt the Watchers Council with Giles in charge. There are about 2000 Slayers with 500 spread around the world. In my humble opinion there have been signs of a possible BX hookup in the future of the comic and I'm sort of exploring that here. With this story I hope to capture all that made BtVS so amazing. Drama, humor, heart, sex, action, quirkiness, and the characters we all know and love acting like adults for once.**

**Authors Notes 2: As the comic doesn't really place the year, although its supposed to be season eight, I'm setting the story in September 2007.**

* * *

**"If You're Asking If I Need You The Answer Is Forever, If You're Asking If I'll Leave You The Answer Is Never, If You're Asking What I Value The Answer Is You, If You're Asking If I Love You The Answer Is I Do"  
unknown author**

**"It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." Author unknown, commonly misattributed to Charles Darwin**

**"The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together." Erma Bombeck**

* * *

**An underground cave dwelling **

**Beneath the Ochil hills **

**Tuesday, September 25, 6:20 PM, 2007 **

**Scotland**

"So," Xander began while trying not to look down, his voice echoing over the massive bottomless pit he hung over. He was secured by his wrists to a metal brace attached to the cave's ceiling. With Buffy tied next to him, he continued, "Do you think this thing is really bottomless?"

Casting her gaze downward for a moment, Buffy scrunched her nose. "I can't see anything down there. It looks pretty bottomless to me. That hole has a without-end sort of charm going for it."

"Personally, I think if we had parachutes and were falling down that thing we'd land in China."

"Is that a scientific guess or are you using Man Logic again, which apparently isn't based on facts, expert opinion, or common sense?"

"I so don't ever want to be hung over a bottomless pit with you again."

"Funny, I don't have a problem with that. It's not like I own any hanging-over-a-bottomless-pit outfits anyway." She'd laugh if they weren't about to plummet to their death. Having been gassed and then taken hostage a day ago, the Byshier Clan told them that at the fall of the sun the next day they would be dropped in the sacred bottomless pit for intruding on 'unholy ground' as they called it.

Buffy really didn't like dying, having died twice before. She especially, though quietly, didn't want Xander to die either. She's gotten rather attached to her Xander-shaped friend who... and then she thought to herself how she hadn't seen him as that in a couple of years now. He was just Xander, this really great guy she knew who was very close to her. My how the times had changed. "For the life of me I can't believe a group of deaf midget Satan worshipers got the drop on us. I've been fighting some very Jurassic Park-sized creatures lately and yet a group of tiny sign language using devil lovers caught us investigating their crusty looking shrine and poof, we're hanging over a bottomless pit with our allies having no clue where we are."

"You know, Buff," Xander pondered out loud, "On the off chance that we get rescued I... well, uhm... Look, I don't want anyone to know we got captured by a group of midgets. I think that might undermine our badass legacy."

Thinking it over carefully, Buffy surmised only one proper reply. "I concur."

"We were attacked by a small army of eight-foot tall..."

"Four-armed sword wielding..."

"Fire breathing..."

"Barbarians who rode..."

"Iron-skinned horses..."

"That also breathed fire," Buffy laughed at the end, enjoying herself despite their dire circumstances. Why did moments of impending doom always seem lighter when Xander was with her? He had an effect on her mood in the strangest of ways these days. "Yeah, that outta preserve our badassness."

"Exactly." Peering downward despite his best attempts not to, Xander was suddenly struck with an idea. Whether it was a good or bad one could be debated later. "Okay, I'm gonna try a experiment that's really experimental and thought provoking." Kicking off his right shoe, he watched it fall into the nothingness. "Let's listen for when it lands."

One minute passed.

Five minutes passed.

Ten minutes passed.

"That thing's good and bottomless," Buffy declared, not choosing to lose either of her shoes. They were her most comfortable pumps. Glancing down, she noticed, "Your sock has a hole it in."

Xander rolled his good eye. Buffy could notice the most interesting things during the most dangerous of times. And she looked so damn gorgeous in that beige shirt she was wearing. "I guess you know what to buy me for Christmas then."

"Well," Buffy gazed ahead as the suns ray began to fade coming through a nearby hole in the caves ceiling, "I certainly don't have to get you any mistletoe, now do I?"

She was smiling at him, still poking around to see if he would fess up about who kissed her awake from Amy's spell a couple of months ago. She's never come right out and asked him if he was the one, but he's sure he's her chief suspect. Especially since she found out about his cinnamon bun addiction. Dealing with that has been... interesting to say the least. "Socks, Buffy. I obviously need socks."

He wasn't taking the bait, yet. Considering for a moment, Buffy wondered if she was fishing? Teasing! She was teasing him! That's what she keeps telling herself. Denial is in Egypt, after all. "Since we're going to die soon isn't it about time we get those deepest, darkest secrets out of the way. You go first."

Subtle, thy name was not Buffy. And yet she charmed him to no end. Even when facing certain doom. "Okay, alright. I'll fess up."

Shifting her weight slightly, Buffy awaited his admittance while trying not to react to it to much. Honestly, she didn't know how she was going to react. Or why it seemed to mean so much more to her when she thought about it.

Gazing, Xander met her hazel eyes. "Okay, not that long ago I kissed..."

Buffy began to smile.

"Renee."

He had the nerve to smirk at her, teasing and toying with her when he knew damn well he shouldn't be doing that because she could twirl him over her head with one hand. Need she remind him of what happened the last time he played a practical joke on her? Indulging her inner-brat, she fired back, "I hope you fall first."

Xander couldn't help but to chuckle. "That was mean."

Buffy's, "Whatever," was quite Paris Hilton-like.

See, here's the thing. The true crux of the matter. Was she miffed over his refusal to answer her, or that he didn't give her the answer she wan... woah, better not get ahead of himself. Their friendship contained a fair amount of cute flirtatiousness, but that would be overt flirting if they really talked about the kiss. Still, Xander couldn't help but to wonder what would happen if he did truthfully answer her. "Your turn."

"So kissing Renee is your greatest secret?"

Her ire was evident in her annoyed tone of voice. Xander tried to shrug, although hanging over a bottomless pit made that hard. "Well, it's kinda gossipy, tantalizing, and politically incorrect considering my lofty position at Castle Slayer. We had dinner one night and it kinda happened out of the blue. No big. But never mind that. What about you?"

It wasn't like she cared who he kissed anyway. Still, Buffy felt verbal torture was hers to command as she delivered the last thing he'd ever want to hear for reasons she wasn't quite ready to admit to herself yet. "Spike is the best kisser I have ever kissed."

Oh, was that a vein that throbbed in Xander's neck, wasn't it? And why was his jaw tightening? Yep, Buffy knew she had gotten him good. Stupid Slayer-smooching Xander-shaped friend that he was again. Let him chew on that a while. Even though it wasn't true it... and then she blushed because she realized that the emotion she had felt when Xander told her he kissed Renee was... gulp, a wee bit of the green eyed monster. Boy oh boy, she didn't ever need to feel that feeling that over him.

"Now that was mean." After a moment Xander's face broke out into a affectionate grin as he understood her need to goad him and how his revelation had obviously affected her. They were being juvenile and silly because as strange as it was, he felt things were slowly changing between them. Very slowly, but still changing. And instead of joking about it, or trying to force the other person to admit something first, he figured it was time to actually try to take a step forward.

After all, they were hanging over a bottomless pit after having been kidnapped by a group of deaf midget Satan worshipers.

"Buff?"

"I'm so not talking to you."

"But you just did."

She frowned. "Don't bother me with the facts."

Buffy was being difficult... and cute... and soon enough she was making that little sweet half-laugh noise of hers at how stupid they were acting. Xander desperately wanted to kiss her... again. And it almost seemed like she wouldn't be opposed to it. "Let's call a truce. How about we forget the whole deepest, darkest secrets thing and I break all my manly man rules and take you to see Hairspray?"

Perking up immediately, that almost sounded like a sorta kinda date. And since she hadn't been on anything resembling a date since... well, if you considered alone time with a straight guy hanging over a bottomless pit was as close to one as she's had in well over a year. And don't even talk to her about sex. "It's a musical, you know."

"I have a vague recollection of seeing a commercial or two. I'm well aware of the singing and dancing and all around High School Musical 2-like performance pieces."

"I knew you saw High School Musical 2. I heard you humming something about bet on it, bet on it."

"I was blackmailed by Dawn. We shall never speak of this again."

Truthfully, Buffy did want to see Hairspray and just hadn't had time lately with all the demon Slaying, beheading, stabbing, kneeing, roundhouse kicking, zombie skull crushing, dimension jumping, and Andrew's great stew debacle that did far more damage to her Slayers than any evil had recently. Seeing it with Xander would be cool. Seeing it alone with him would be nice. Just two buds watching a romantic musical. "So you're taking me to see Hairspray, huh?"

"Yes, although if anyone asks you I took you to see Die Hard 4 or Transformers. Something with a gun being fired and men running in slow motion with things exploding behind them. Something manly and American."

Xander was sweet and quirky, both traits Buffy enjoyed having around her. Handsome and courageous and hard working and very good at coordinating her Slayers and taking care of her and being a great confidant and... Dammit, she worried that she liked to much about him these days. And the eye patch was sexy, something she loathed to admit. "If we live through this we'll go this weekend. Deal?"

"Deal. I'd shake on it, but well, you know."

"Yeah, the bottomless pit thing."

Suddenly their arms lifted them high into the air as they heard soft chanting, and then saw the most appreciated sight of Willow casting some sort of telekinesis spell that carried them over the bottomless pit onto a ledge beside her. They rushed in and hugged her tightly as she hugged them back.

"You are the best witch ever and I totally forgive you for trying to destroy the world once," Xander complimented upon hugging Willow tightly, as his arms were killing him from hanging over the pit so long. "How did you find us?"

Wincing slightly from Buffy's Slayer strength, Willow noted, "Well, since we have search and rescue spells on both of you, we were pretty scared when they turned up nothing."

Buffy quickly interjected, "It was the, uhm... eight foot tall, four armed, sword wielding, fire breathing barbarians on iron-skinned horses who also breathed fire that took us to this cave they said no one could find."

Blinking, Willow looked back and forth between her friends, trying not to laugh. "That's funny. Faith beat up a couple of deaf midget Satan worshipers with a bat who tried to use some kind of knock out gas on her and thankfully Sandy knew sign language and was able to learn where they said you would be." Buffy and Xander looked oh so busted. She enjoyed her triumph. "Four armed barbarians, huh?"

Xander gave a defeated nod. "We're never going to live this down, are we?"

"Not in your lifetime, no," Willow replied. "What happened to your other shoe?"

"Scientific experimentation, Wills."

"Your sock has a hole in it. A pretty big one."

"Holy sock or not, Xander's taking me to see Hairspray," Buffy chimed in, waltzing past them out of the cave. She overheard some gentle whispering and the line, "...so did you tell her?"

Yeah, Buffy was pretty damn sure who kissed her. What she wasn't prepared for was how that knowledge made her feel and what to do with to do with those new feelings for her former Xander-shaped friend turned handsome, single, breathing, straight, grown man wearing a sexy eye patch.

* * *

**The Full Moon Casino **

**Private V.I.P quarters in the Upper Floor **

**Tuesday, September 25, 9:30 PM, 2007 **

**Monte Carlo, Monaco**

"Eventual extinction is the end result of a stagnant people," Adam boldly declared with a thick Russian accent as he casually circled the long marble business table, hands behind his back, eyes focused on the prize to be won tonight. "Our histories have clashed with bloodshed and violence since time began, and so shall it until there is no more. Peace is impossible for us, but working together to ensure our proper place at the top of the food chain is smart business."

Seated in a brightly lit private luxury suite surrounded by fifty heavily-armed guards, the intense meeting many thought would never take place was in actuality taking place. One that would fade into legend as the decades passed. On one side of the table, Lord Dimitri Vamos, head of the worldwide Vampire Nation sat in a dark black business suit with his personal entourage of killers and lawyers.

Seated across from him was a rival he's been trying to kill since the 1800's, Lord Solomon Trask, leader of the worldwide Werewolf Pride sat with his personal death squad and his accountant. Both organizations were the true power behind their respective races across the globe. Operating outside of the Nation or the Pride could get you killed faster than you could blink.

Standing tall at the head of the table, Adam Masikroft purposely made direct eye contact with every man seated at the table, conveying the utmost respect. How his beloved Eve was able to convince Solomon Trask to come here only underscored her considerable abilities. Though a vampire himself, he was obsessively in love with this alluring female Lycan. Both of whom were supremely ambitious. "Some believe vampire lore began in Russia or Bulgaria. Others, Serbia or Poland prior to 8th century AD. The legacy of the werewolf legend began to emerge from the middle ages, especially from the 15th to 17th century. Our kind, both Vampire and Lycan, have survived every war, every plague, and every monumental shift of history Earth has endured. But we are not without flaw as evidenced in the errors of our genetic design. Today, my brothers, I offer to broker a deal that will ensure we retain our proper place in the world for hundreds of years to come, all the while giving us new avenues to pursue that we've never had before."

Standing to the side in a slinky little black Versace dress, Eve Collins closely watched the man she loved in his finest hour. Her dark green eyes followed his ever move, as primal as the forbidden passion they shared. Powerfully built and handsome despite the hard lines of his face, she knew he was the only one who could turn this potential blood bath into a business deal. He was better than the best at talking his way in and out of any situation, while she was brutal enough to get her hands dirty if need be. They were a perfect match in so many respects. The information she shared with him could still get her killed, but she rolled the dice, betting the odds that they could pull this off and make a fortune at the same time.

Provided they weren't slaughtered first.

After drinking from a chalice of blood, Adam pressed on, "Vampire scientists have studied the virus/curse hybrid of vamperism for decades, as have the Lycan scientists researched their own genetic/mystical origins. Neither have found solutions to their respective problems. But recent developments have become rumors that I have proof are facts." Seated again, his hands calmly clasped on the table, taking in Solomon and Dimitri's interest. Though they shared a hatred for one another and detested the business of their organizations becoming public knowledge to the other, both were smart enough to hear him out. "The Vampire Nation has discovered a cure of sorts for the Lycan community, while they have in turn found a serum that would greatly aid Vampires."

Solomon and Dimitri, both graying old relics... horrifically powerful and ruthless, listened on with keen interest. Aware of their own groups findings, those of the other were intriguing to say the least.

"As I stated before, peace between us is simply not possible. The wounds are far to old, and run too deep. But with the worlds governments becoming much more interested in underworld activities, as well as demonic forces growing stronger by the day and even extraterrestrial entities becoming more than idle gossip we have to ensure that our respective races are prepared for this great new world."

"And let us not forget the accursed Watcher's Council." Adam felt the tension grow with that organization's mere mention. "Where once they were a dated, uninspired governing body with but a single Slayer across the pond in their control, now there are over two thousand trained Slayers working together against us worldwide. The Council is reorganized and thinking ahead rather than backwards. They are led by the most power Slayer ever, and their considerable wealth is being used to design new weapons and technology to fight us. They intend to eradicate us!" his fist pounded the table for effect. "But we can combat them. We can become anew. Watch and absorb the wonder."

Thirteen-inch monitors rose from the table in front of each person. Adam began detailing the facts as video footage accompanied his statements. "Vampire scientists have named their Lycan serum 'Prey.' One injection will forever alter the DNA and mystical curse itself of a Lycan. It will allow him or her to change into werewolf form at any time, the full moon be damned, as well as turn back when they choose. Silver will have no adverse effect in the way of its usage as a deadly weapon against you. Immunity is guaranteed. Furthermore, a Lycan will be able to maintain its human sanity while in werewolf form. Imagine all that power and strength, but without the mindlessness of the beast being in control."

"Watch your tongue, dog," Solomon spat out, his gnarled finger aimed at the vampire. "Lest you lose it."

Swallowing hard, Adam lifted an apologetic hand. "I meant no disrespect, my Lord. But the facts and proof of my claims are before you, as well as two of your rogue Lycans tied up in the basement in full werewolf form, yet completely sane. You may inspect them as you wish, and are free to take them with you to study should you agree to my terms."

Having no trust ever for a vampire, Solomon couldn't chance this not being a lie. "Continue."

One down, Adam thought to himself. One to go. "Eve has informed me that the Lycan scientists have dubbed their Vampire serum 'Reign.' One injection will render a vampire immune to all forms of ultraviolet rays including sunlight." A hushed silence fell over the vampire contingent as the ramifications of their true worst enemy, the sun itself, could now be vanquished. "In addition, a stake through the heart will render no more than a flesh wound. The ability to dust our kind will be a thing of the past."

Video footage of various tests being run by the scientists, as well as time-stamps showing research had been ongoing for nearly twenty years was shown for the next sixty minutes. Adam answered questions and reassured fears.

Standing once more to his feet, Adam addressed the entire room, his voice rising dramatically. "Hate exists between our race's and forever shall it be that way. But if we make this one pact we will fortify our individual position in the world and ensure the preservation of our race against these growing, powerful enemies who looking to the future while deeming us the forgotten past. I propose that each side hand over its serum and all research done to create it. A fair trade, and one that I will personally guarantee will be cordial, private, and well guarded." He then added the kicker. "I only ask the sum of twenty million dollars each due upon the moment the cures are exchanged."

"Tell me, young one?" Dimitri finally spoke, his voice old and cold as midnight. "Why should I not kill you where you stand for attempting to bargain with your lord?"

"Because for your ten million I will not only guarantee a safe and secure transfer of both serums, but I will hand deliver Buffy Ann Summers, the leader of the Slayers, to you as a prize. You could tear her apart if you like, or perhaps divide her body amongst yourselves. But I always keep my promises, my lord. " Bowing respectfully, he fell to one knee before Dimitri. "It is but a small fee I ask, my lord. For it, our greatest enemy shall be at your feet and the bonds that have restricted us since time began shall be broken."

"The girl," Solomon added with fire. "Turning a Slayer into a Lycan would be most interesting... as a pet, of course. Or a whore."

Dimitri's icy blue eyes bore into Adam's, seeking his undivided attention. "How can you assure us you will capture the Slayer? Many have tried and were never heard from again."

Wearing a maniacal smirk, Adam said, "Trust that I will lure her into a trap she will not be able to resist. Instead of throwing bodies at her to battle, I will use cunning and her caring for those around her. The risk is mine alone and death awaits me if I fail. I assure you though, I won't." His daring confidence seemed to sway things in his favor. Whether they believed he could deliver or not, the opportunity was still to great to miss. He sensed victory was at hand. "My Lords, your will be done. But do we have a deal?"

Gazing one at the the other, despite it all this was worth the ultimate risk. And with the most powerful Slayer on the planet as a prize how could they refuse?

"It shall be done," both answered at the same time.

* * *

**Castle Slayer **

**Formerly "Amhuinnsuidhe Castle"  
Situated on the Isle of Harris **

**The War Room **

**Wednesday, September 26, 5:00 PM, 2007 **

**Scotland**

Having taken his plush, luxury seat next to Buffy at the oval 'War Room' table where the leadership gathered to discuss such pressing issues like how best to protect the world, solve petty castle domestic squabbles, critique the cooks menu's, and gossip; Xander gasped at the sight of Andrew attempting to park his new bright yellow hover-chair. The self-professed 'Worlds Greatest Geek' backed his hover-chair in, found it to long and then tried to situate it sideways, only to accidentally bump Faith's chair and earn himself a death glare. "Andrew, please explain to me why you need a working replica of Professor Xavier's chair from the X-men comic books when you have to perfectly working, albeit chicken-like legs?"

Solving his minor dilemma by finding a sweet spot to park, Andrew explained, "This chair adds speed and mobility to my leadership role that genetics failed me by not providing. I consider my parents rather nonathletic DNA as the culprit."

"And that makes sense to you?"

"Well, you weren't complaining when I built that Slurpee machine for your bedroo..." The pen that was thrown at him silenced him quickly. He was delicate that way, you know. "Carry on."

Buffy favored Xander with a mild frown while chewing her grape Bubblicious bubble gum. "That was my pen. The good one with the hearts and stakes on it. I actually killed a vampire with that pen once."

"I'll retrieve it for you before the meeting is over with, Buff. And I was with you the night you pen-staked that vamp. It was very impressive."

"He was wearing a Vanilla Ice t-shirt. He deserved to die." Xander concurred. Buffy looked up when Willow and Giles entered the room and then took their respective chairs. Dawn, newly de-gigantisized, sipped her diet Cola while Faith sat backwards in her chair, ready for this meeting to get on. With Robin handling the more business-like Watchers Council affairs in London, it fell to this rag tag group of heroes to deal out the day-to-day assignments.

Sighting a serious topic, Buffy felt she needed to remind everyone, "It's spaghetti night in the cafeteria. You guys are late and the spaghetti's getting cold."

Patience, Giles reminded himself, was still his most useful ally in dealing with his former charge. "Yes, well I'm sure they will reheat it for you, Buffy. And I love how you're far more concerned with spaghetti night than the possible end of the world."

"I've dealt with the end of the war on numerous occasions. But not many people make spaghetti like Harriett does. She adds this really spicy sausage and..." Her former Watcher's polite glare halted that line of thinking. "K, what's the what?"

Opening the first of his two folders, Giles adjusted his reading glasses and then addressed the table. "Before I begin I feel I need to note that while the Council's wealth greatly exceeds our actual operating costs, the sheer amount of items purchased in the last six months that seem to have nothing to do with our battle against the underworld must be discussed."

Giles continued, "We've been lenient in our open expense account for the leadership brass, but that has to be within reason. To that end I feel we must address the following." Noting the rather nervous looks circling the room, he began reeling off the Council's latest accounting expense report. "Now let's see here. Someone out sourced a small elf-operated company in Finland to design a large specialized cauldron with a DVD player and 15'inch flat screen HD television embedded on its exterior." Pointing a stare at Willow, she smiled brightly.

"I..." she stuttered just a bit, her hands folded in her lap. "I sometimes like to mix potions old school style and watch my favorite TV shows while I do so. Trust me, that product was a very necessary and useful one."

Giles felt a small headache began to throb in his temples at making sense of that. "Yes, I'm sure watching Charmed reruns while combining goat's feet and bat's tails aided in the proper mixture you were conjuring." Moving down the list. "Faith, did you absolutely require a Pacific-Blue 2007 Harley Davidson FXCWC motorcycle to fight the forces of evil?"

With her feet up on the table over the Watcher's Council symbol, Faith shrugged. "No, I needed that to look good."

"Vanity matters. Check," Giles shook his head before going to the next item. "Dawn, did you truly need 200 bars of Dial soap?"

Dawn felt just a bit insulted. "I was twenty-feet tall and bathing in a lake, Giles. You do the math."

"Alrighty then." Moving right along, Giles added, "Xander, there's a thousand dollar crystal disco ball and a 55'inch HD television on your expense account. Kindly explain why you needed those items?"

Sitting up straight, Xander appeared serious as he attempted to convey why they were necessary. "My good man, do to my lack of an extra eye and subsequent 10/10 vision, the television screen I watch needs to have the sharpest, clearest, best picture possible. Sony Electronics aided in that regard. As for the disco ball, I was channeling my inner John Travolta and wanted a Saturday Night Fever sort of decor to my bedroom. I've been catching up on his 1970's movies via the Encore channel."

Giles just stared... and stared some more... and kept right on staring.

"Giles, I'm just a big TV loving, Staying Alive watching, disco ball hanging over my bed American male. I can't change who I am. I am what I am and that's all that I am."

Willow complimented, "That was quite Popeye the Sailor Manish of you."

Cheesing, Xander replied, "I try."

Some things never changed, Giles surmised. Brushing his hand over his head, he moved on to the last items on his list. "We have two anonymous purchases. One is a two thousand dollar autographed photo of Jean Claude Van Damme purchased from an EBAY auction, while the other is a crate of Cinnamon Buns from Sara Lee." Lifting his gaze about, he sighed, "Would anyone care to pursue the honest route and admit they procured these items?"

Her interest p[piqued, Buffy quickly studied the room as she knew she hadn't anything to do with those items. Andrew had an expression on his face that she swore screamed 'I LOVE VAN DAMME!' She was sure he was the EBAY culprit. Dawn seemed oblivious, lost in a Bradgelina article. Faith didn't care. Willow seemed to be hiding a mildly curious smile, while Xander seemed particularly guilty looking in maintaining a poker face when she knew good and well he didn't play poker well. His walking back to his room in only his Scooby Doo boxers post a Slayer's strip poker game last week was testament to that. Yes, it had to be him with the cinnamon bun addiction. But if he had one why hadn't she noticed it by now?

Offering a gentle nudge of her leg against his, Buffy leaned close to Xander's ear, warming the shell. "Care to fess up?" She watched his lips curl into a whimsical smile despite trying not too.

"I have loved Van Damme for years," he smirked in her face.

"Yeah, right." Sitting back in her chair, her leg was still brushed against his, though he didn't seem to mind. He was massaging his left wrist, apparently still sore after yesterday's hanging over a bottomless pit episode. "You okay?"

Nodding, he replied, "I'll live."

"I bet a cinnamon bun would help," she grinned.

"Larry the janitor always has one," Xander fired back, to which she rolled her eyes. That man was the hairiest man alive that wasn't a werewolf. Nice, but damn hairy. "And doesn't he have the most kissable lips you've ever seen?" He had the nerve to wink at her.

Buffy wanted to kick him.

Hard!

And then maybe, possibly, kiss him back... provided he kiss her first and admit he kissed her awake out of her magic induced coma.

Groaning, Faith interjected, "Look, we are all abusing the fuck out of our endless expense account and after all at that Sunnydale business I see no reason to stop at least until the new year. I mean, Giles ain't driving a new BMW for his health," she taunted in a way the former Watcher could only bow his head most guilty. "I, for one, am tired of hearing about the expense accounts and watching Xander and Buffy's continuous flirting which everyone knows will end up with them having loads of sex. So can we please get on with the business of the day?"

"Hey," was spoken at the same time by Buffy and Xander, who both turned bashful really quick when Dawn and Willow gave them interesting looks.

"Yes, Days of our Slayer Lives will continue in a moment," Giles noted before opening his second folder. "Onto the real business of the day then. An undercover operative working security at a Monte Carlo Casino run by a very dangerous Vampire has delivered extremely disturbing news. It appears that scientists for the Vampire Nation and Wolf Pride respectfully, each have created serums that would greatly aid the other."

Taking his time, Giles went on to describe the intricate details of the undercover Slayer's report, explaining what each serum would do for the Vampires and Lycans, as well as the dire long term ramifications it would have on the world. "We aren't looking at our general end of the world scenario. We are in some ways looking at organizations like ourselves. People positioning themselves to be able to fight this war for the long haul. And if Dimitri Vamos and Solomon Trask, rivals who have wished death on the other for over two hundred years sat a mere five feet across from each other we have to assume these serums are the real deal. This become our new worldwide top priority."

"The serums should be impossible," Willow said, voicing her expert opinion. "We're not talking about just the chemical and genetic parts of the Lycan and Vampire virus, but the mystical as well. Merging science with mysticism is tricky, extremely dangerous, and should be impossible."

"All the more reason we need to get all the research those vamps and dog-boys have," Faith added. "Let's face facts. Those scientists aren't playing fair or by any rules at all. Why wouldn't they be far ahead of what we think is possible when they won't say no to anything they want to try? I guarantee you plenty of people died for those serums to be made."

"Faith's right," Xander agreed, his now aching left wrist in his lap. "They're both playing Dr. Frankenstein with no morals or ethics at all. So we need to know everything they know. If Vampires could move around during the day we'd be in huge trouble. And a Lycan is almost as strong as a Slayer, but if you add in human sanity you would have an army of powerful wolfies ready to cause all sorts of mayhem."

"If the serums work, we could turn them into weapons." Andrew couldn't help going over the possibilities. "Having them could turn the tide of everything."

Buffy observed Dawn listening closely and taking notes. New to the day-to-day team, her sister was very serious about contributing to the group while Xander was training her to fight. Speaking of the guy she wasn't sure quite she was crushing on, he kept massaging his sore wrist, tugging some affectionate heart string of hers. She tried to push it out of her mind. "When and where, Giles? That's all we need to know?"

"Four days from now at the Full Moon Casino. We aren't sure if the Vampire and Lycan lords will be there this time or will send representatives, but we expect you all to be in the eye of the hurricane. In addition, the Full Moon Casino's owner, Adam Masikroft switches security teams and personell every seventy-two hours from his other business interests in the area. The new team goes to work tomorrow night. Our inside contact is Virginia Howell, one of Robin's Slayers. She's been undercover there the past three months gathering information. She's getting you all jobs at the casino where we'll set up our operation."

When Xander winced painfully while turning his wrist, Buffy slid her hand over his, and then gently took his wrist between her hands and began massaging the pain away. Unconsciously, she offered, "Then we need to get packed tonight and we need full mission briefs by first thing in the morning. Make sure we have schematics of that casino. Andrew, you handle transportation."

Already typing at the lap top on his hover-chair, he gave a nod. "I'll have a plane ready to go no later than 2:00 PM tomorrow afternoon. A non-stop flight coming right up. I'll make sure our gear is ready as well."

"Good." Buffy continued her tender care of Xander wrist, using her thumbs over and around it while planning. "Dawn, we'll need fake ID's as well as passports and money in their currency."

Cheeky in her response as she was watching her sister closely, noting her caring of Xander, Dawn smiled, "No problem."

Xander meanwhile, he didn't mind the loving care he was receiving, never mind Buffy didn't seem to realize what she was doing, or that everyone was watching her take care of him like this. It was to nice to get hopeful about, no matter how much he wanted to. Then again, she was so set for him to reveal that he was the one who kissed her that he had to accept that maybe she wanted it to be him. Not just to know it was, but was hoping it was him.

Willow's head shaking tease wasn't helping.

"I think we're all set," Giles declared upon grabbing his folders. "We're going in with a small team, you guys, just our best. We can't risk spooking anyone with a larger force. We're taking both cures however the opportunity arises. And I suggest you prepare for one bloody hell of a fight."

"Sounds like a plan, G-Man." Faith stood to her feet, stretching her arms. "Now if Buffy's done giving Xander a wrist-job over there," snickering all around the room, "I think this meeting is over."

Delivering a sudden blank and then partially embarrassed expression, Buffy casually released Xander's wrist and then looked away as the others left the room chuckling. Now she was all alone with her... friend. Yep, her really nice, handsome, sexy, funny friend who she most definitely did not want to bone.

"Thanks for the wrist-job, Buff."

His teasing couldn't go unpunished. "I'm sure its the most action you've had in a very long time."

"Sadly enough, I will neither confirm nor deny that charge, although I may nod." With everyone else gone they were still sitting there, alone, as if there were more to say. He'd already made up his mind about this situation after the Amy/Warren incident, but something inside him just needed to know if... Hadn't he buried that part of him years ago?

"I... I don't often give wrist-jobs." Okay, as soon as Buffy said that she realized she was probably number 3 on the all-time dumbest things a woman has ever said to a guy she might someday date. "Take off shoe, insert foot."

Seeing Buffy act slightly nervous was making Xander slightly nervous. This was so out of his element. And why did she look so damn hot and her hair smell of strawberries? Why was he so close to her he could smell how her hair smelled? And why was he stressing over that when he should say something cool and witty like to impress her. Here goes nothing. "I often give myself wrist-jobs."

After a weird sorta pause they looked at each other and then started laughing their asses off because that had to be the worse excuse for non-flirting flirtatiousness in the history of mankind.

"Xan, you need to get that wrist checked out before we leave tomorrow. And that's an order."

Her smile was infectious and her caring felt good. Plus, his wrist was bothering him. "I need some BenGay and a night free from using it."

"No masturbation."

"I have two ha... I so am not finishing that sentence."

"Good, cause I can't believe I said what I said." Why did she feel sixteen again, struggling for something to say. "So..."

"Want a kiss?"

Exhaling a chuckle, her eyes raised to his good one, finding him just a little to close. "Maybe."

"Maybe?"

"Yeah, maybe. As in possibly." She watched him sit back, relaxing in his chair once more. He had the nerve to be waiting for her to ask for a kiss. He had some nerve! Much like Rick James, she was Buffy Summers, BITCH! Men came back from hell to kiss her! And yet how did any of that work out? Maybe she needed a new strategy. She sighed, "Why can't you just admit it?"

He's been asking himself the same thing. "Why is it such a big deal?"

"Because..." And then she couldn't answer. The words lodged in her throat, pitched a tent, and began camping. After all these years how could they possibly go from friendship to something else? Especially when she couldn't even admit to herself that something else seemed like a really good idea. And then she mentally said screw it all. "Xander?"

"Yep?"

"Give me a kiss."

Having waited nearly a full decade to hear that, Xander's reply was to reach in his pocket and produce a small, silver confection. "Here you go."

Now at this point Buffy wanted to grab a baseball bat, but she refrained as in a strange way his tease gave her an out. She wasn't sure what she would of done if he actually honored her request. Standing to her feet, she unwrapped the Hersey's kiss, ate it, an then made her way towards the door. Turning to face him one last time, she said, "Maybe one day you'll have the courage to give me the kiss you want too."

She left him breathless when she walked away... and short one less Hersey's Kiss. Oh well, he still had half a crates worth of Cinnamon Buns left.

* * *

**Castle Slayer **

**Formerly "Amhuinnsuidhe Castle"  
Situated on the Isle of Harris **

**Buffy Summer's bedroom **

**Wednesday, September 26, 10:45 PM, 2007 **

**Scotland**

"Face it, Buffy. The most action your king-sized bed has seen is when you carried it in here."

Popping another deliciously warm Pizza Roll in her mouth while lying beside her sister, Buffy complained in her beige pajama's, "You have some nerve critiquing my nonexistent sex life when yours caused you to go all Jolly Green Giant, minus the green."

"Point taken, but still," Dawn replied, "You are going through a severe drought the likes of which would make a poor African village feel sorry for you."

"Boy, you're a big help." Sitting up at the head of the bed while Dawn laid at the foot, Buffy tossed another Pizza Roll in her mouth. Missing spaghetti night had her bummed already, and now being dissed by your own sister wasn't helping. "Seriously, guy advice from you is like Helen Keller asking Stevie Wonder to describe a donut."

"You, oh Queen of choosing the wrong guy, and mostly the guy who is already dead, have not leg to stand on."

"I'll cop to having made some bad choices before in the daring pool, but at least I was never super-sized."

Rolling over onto her back, Dawn stared at the ceiling, her fingers drumming impatiently over the covers. "I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

"You bathed in a small lake and barely fit in it. You slept in a hollowed out wine cellar. Kinda hard to beat that one." Yawning, Buffy propped a pillow behind her head, winding down from a wonderful Pizza Roll dinner high. She's spent the last couple of hours packing her bags, detailing the Slayers schedules while she was gone, and avoiding a certain Mr. Harris who still hadn't given in to her charms yet. "I'm going to take a sabbatical from dating. Its not like I have time to date anyone. My schedule's hectic and wacky. Then there's all the killing I do. Killing turns guys off. I read that in Cosmo."

"But what if he worked closely with you already?" Dawn couldn't help to taunt, glancing away when Buffy's obvious glare sought her out. "I was stupid and dumb, alright. It happens at my age. No more Thricewise sexing for me. I'm strictly anti-mystical from now on. But you, you have a great honey prospect."

All out of Pizza Rolls, Buffy groaned, "Can't we talk about something else?"

"All you talk about is that damn kiss! I'm sick of hearing about it."

"But you and I both know it was Xander."

"I was outside stomping zombies in my resized Reebok's, so I don't know who kissed you. But I can clearly see through your little secret."

"Secret?" Buffy huffed all pouty like, her arms crossed. "What secret? I have no secret except my deodorant. And it never tells."

Sitting up to face her sister, Dawn was tired of beating around the bush as Buffy's behavior had only gotten stranger the last couple weeks. "Why can't you admit that you want it to be Xander?" Watching her sister's lips part, no sound came out. She gave a sorta head shake/shrug hybrid that didn't make any sense. Typical Buffy. "You want it to be him. Fess up."

"No I don't... mostly."

"If it was Willow you would have talked it out with her a long time ago. You just aren't Will's type and she sure as heck ain't yours."

"What, I'm not good enough potential lesbian material for Wills?"

How could Buffy actually be defensive about this? Dawn was sure her sister was clinically insane but never diagnosed. "If it was one of your Slayers someone would have slipped up by now and exposed themselves. You're around them all day long and would notice if someone was acting strange."

"That makes some sense."

"Neither Angel nor Spike were anywhere near Scotland."

"True, but what about Satsu and her lip gloss?"

"I caught her making out with Paul, one of Giles personal bodyguards two weeks ago. That girl doesn't want woman parts," Dawn explained bluntly. "You and I both know it was Xander who smooched you awake. And furthermore, you want it to be Xander. Admit it! ADMIT IT!! ADMIT IT!!!"

Hands over her face, head shaking against her palm, Buffy drowned in her denial until her heart finally broke free and at long last the truth erupted from her lips. "I THINK I WANT SOME XANDER LOVING!"

"Okay, that was kinda loud. Good thing you have thick walls." Laughing affectionately, Dawn leaned over and gave her sister a hug. It was a good moment. "Look, I don't know for certain it was him, but I couldn't imagine it being anyone else. I just want you to keep this in mind, okay? Whoever kissed you had to be to be in love with you. That means someones feelings have been exposed without their consent. And if they know you don't feel the same way then that causes a whole host of problems, insecurities, and all around emotional pain the likes of which suck the ass of a donkey. And from what I hear donkey ass sucking truly sucks."

Buffy kinda stared at her sister... for a while.

"I tend to go off the deep end at times, but my motives are true," Dawn pointed out.

Yeah, they were. Buffy stretched her arms out in a relaxing pose, feeling better about things and having reached a more profound understanding. "Thank you, sis," she acknowledged, hugging her again. "I might of needed that, but it's not easy to say."

"That's what I'm here for. Just for once make the first move. Then you might actually get what you want. And don't forget he's had it as bad relationship wise as you have."

Agreeing with her, Buffy followed Dawn to her bedroom door. "I got personal work to do, I guess."

"Yep, you sure do. As for me, I'm gonna create us some fake names and ID's. You're gonna be Mike Honcho."

"You're been watching Talladega Nights to much."

"I love me some Ricky Bobby. Night, Buff."

The door shut and then Buffy leaned against it, tugging her bottom lip with her teeth, deep in thought. Her head hung low while going over and over in her mind the pro's and cons of dating Xander, or even admitting that she might want too. They've been the best of friends forever, and honestly, even moreso than Giles she knows she can trust and count on him. Risking a person that dear to her was a scary thing, and yet what might she be missing out on?

Okay, Xander makes her laugh and smile a lot.

He's great at coordinating everything around her so that she can concentrate on the training and leading the Slayers. He's damn reliable, loyal, smarter than anyone gives him credit for and very brave. She never has to look over her shoulder because he always has her back.

"And mercy, has he been working out," she was pleased to note in the pro category. Six pack heaven lived on his belly now and she's noticed more than a few times. He's just older and everything about him feels different, yet at the core the same. The patch does change how he looks to her on some elemental level. There's a darker edge that appeals to her, though he's still the same guy she's always loved.

Only now they are almost three years removed from Sunnydale. Three years was a very long time and she's changed as much if not more than anyone. Maybe it was high time everything else changed too. Nothing ever stayed the same.

Exhaling a slow, nervous breath, Buffy Summers prepared for the longest and quite possibly most meaningful journey of her entire life. One that would take her closer to her best friend than she's ever been before.

Taking three steps to cross the way, she was at Xander's door. Yeah, their rooms were that close. It still felt like she walked a freaking mile.

Raising her hand she knocked hard twice and then waited. Footsteps came closer before the door swung open, revealing an open shirt of muscles owned by one Alexander Harris. In his hand, a Coca Cola Slurpee. He greeted her warmly. "Sorry, Buff. I'm all out of kisses."

"I don't want anymore of your kisses," she replied with a smile. Grinning in that cute way he did as it seemed he didn't believe her, Buffy rolled her tongue around her cheek before speaking. "I'm bored. Care for some company?"

She was naturally gorgeous with her blond hair down in those beige pajamas. Xander tried not to stare at the top button being undone, revealing a hint of... Moving aside, his hand extended into his bedroom. "Far be it from me to turn down a lovely woman at my door." She brushed past him wearing her somethings-on-my-mind expression. And she still smelled like strawberries. Dammit, he liked strawberries. But she was staring at his abs and looked like she enjoyed what she saw. Chuck Norris was going to get one hell of a Christmas basket for his new workout plan. "Can I get you a Slurpee? I have Cola and Root beer?"

Having no furniture besides a king-sized bed and his computer chair, Buffy chose the former. Deciding to dive right into the danger zone, she crawled over his bed, taking a seat with her back to the headboard. She felt his gaze follow her closely. "No, I'm good." Quickly recognizing what he was looking at on his big screen HD TV, she questioned, "Why are you watching the remake Dawn of the Dead? Don't we fight enough of the dead already? Haven't you had enough of dead people?"

"I watch and kill them, not other unmentionable things, unlike some people," he fired back, but not with an attitude as she seemed to brush it off.

"My unmentionables with any of the dead are long over and shall never return."

"Good to hear." Standing perfectly still, he hadn't made his way over to the bed yet. Verbally flirting was one thing, but lying in his bed next to her was something else. It wasn't like they hadn't done it before, but this time with all the flirting and eye-sex they've been having, he was treading lightly to insure he wasn't reading her wrong. "The dead people in this movie run a lot faster than zombies do in real life."

"Yeah, I've noticed." Buffy turned up the volume a little. "Real life zombies are very unathletic, stumbling, groaning, wanna-eat-your-brains like. Those zombies are track star zombies. I like my zombies slow moving and retarded. None of that Road Runner zombie crap for me."

"You'll hear no disagreements from this end." Sensing the growing tension between them, Xander mentally slapped himself for being this nervous. Whatever was or wasn't happening between them had to be faced head on. And despite wanting to run, he finally made his way over to his bed, slipping in beside her. There was space between them, but it was still very cozy... intimate even. "They aren't enough men in this castle. It's a very Y-chromosome deficient environment I'm working in."

"Hey, there are at least six guys on staff, excluding you."

"Versus forty-three women," he countered.

"Not my fault."

"Most are Slayer's. And all Slayer's are girls. It most certainly is your fault because you called them."

Buffy felt the need to remind him, "You helped."

"Yeah, but still. More men mean more male things to discuss," he noted. "I like Giles, but the generation gap erodes our ability to have a good male conversation. He didn't even know who Jackie Chan was. And Larry the janitor is just to hairy for me to talk to and when he eats food it gets stuck in his thick, scary beard."

"Ewww times twenty."

"Then there's Andrew who's cool sometimes when it comes to comic books and Star Wars, but lousy for talking to about sports, women, sex, women, cooking, women, cars, sex, or naked women."

"You possess a marvelous, varied array of verbal topics."

Xander continued, "Then you have Paul and Mike who work for Giles and are very hardcore Watcher's Council-men. I'm not British and I don't always get their sense of humor and belief that James Bond could kick Rambo's ass. Finally, there's Kyle the driver. He feels his lot in life is to stare at you when you walk by. So I've got nothing to say to that jerk."

Buffy noted a small swell of jealousy there? She rested her head on one of his pillows, considering how nice it felt to be this close to him while doing something as domestic as watching television. "Kyle is eerie, but he knows his way around Scotland. The man is a walking GPS locater."

"I don't like him. He has shifty eyes. They're usually focused on you." Catching her smirking out the corner of his eye, Xander realized how that must have come out. "I'm happy you're enjoying this."

"I know you look out for me. I value that. It's no big."

"That's not what I meant and you know it." A heated look passed between them. One that they were only now getting used too. Her vibrant, beautiful hazel eyes drew him in, though he fought it tooth and nail.

"I feel safe with you," Buffy confessed on her side, facing him as the movie played in the background. "I'm not sure what's so different now or why things are the way they are. I just know that being with you feels right. Being close to you makes me a happy Buffy."

Exhaling a shaky breath, Xander could help the pleased expression emerging on his face. What she said wasn't a confession of undying love, but it was more than friendly and that was enough for now.

And then she surprised him out of the blue.

Lifting his right arm, Buffy drifted along his side, soaking in the warmth of being curled next to him. His arm circled her hip, drawing her just that much closer into a cuddle. A sweet silence fell over them as neither moved a muscle or even shared a glance. This was enough for now, being this close, in each others arms at last.

Thinking it over and their past history, for her making the first move Xander offered a simple, "Thanks."

"It was my pleasure," Buffy yawned peacefully in his arms, her fingers playing over his chest, lazily drawing patterns. They've never acted this way before and yet it felt so normal, as if this were the natural progression of their friendship into more. She was falling hard and saw nothing at all wrong with that. "A little while ago Dawn helped me realize that whoever kissed me, their feelings for me were revealed without their consent. And that person might not be comfortable with that, as well as not knowing how I feel." Lifting her gaze to his, she added, "Whether if it was you or not that kissed me, i I just want you to know that I'm exactly where I want to be."

Throwing caution to the wind, Xander pressed a loving kiss to her forehead, holding her closer now, reveling in his someday fantasy made perfect. There was a long way to go still, but this was a start. "Buff, you have just made Dawn of the Dead the most romantic movie ever." Her soft laughter lifted his soul. Hey, he had to walk through this final door sometime, no matter where it led him.

"When you take me to see Hairspray... I... I, uhm. I want it to be a real date. You know, one where you shave before we go and I try on a bunch of outfits looking for a sexy one and we eat dinner somewhere that doesn't have a kids jungle gym or any sort of Happy Meal."

"I think I can manage that, Buff. I'll go all out and spend a whole twenty dollars on dinner."

"You're going out of your way to impress me, aren't you?"

"I might even spend thirty dollars and take you someplace where its mandatory you wear shoes. And I promise my socks will not be holy," he joked while yawning himself as his breathing grew slow, falling in line with Buffy's. Time passed as eyes grew sleepy until at last they fell. The living battled the dead in the background as they were asleep fully clothed, but one step closer to something magical.

* * *

**A black Boeing Business Jet 2 **

**The Slayer's private executive jet, currently flying a 540 miles per hour.  
Thursday, September 27, 5:22 PM, 2007 **

**Enroute to Monte Carlo**

"I gotta warn you, this will be as pleasant as drinking a cold glass of Liquid Plumber." Circling the small black table Dawn sat at in the back of the jet, Xander watched her wince painfully while vigorously rubbing her eyes. "They hurt like Angel's favorite vacation spot the first time you put them in. Good thing it doesn't last."

The burning fog that was driving her crazy the very second she put in her 'special' contacts began to slowly fade as her eyes watered. She blinked a couple of times, staring at herself in the mirror on the desk until her vision cleared. She exhaled as the pain ebbed away into nothingness. "Will it hurt like that every time?"

"Same soup, just reheated," Xander offered as he's only in the last six months become accosted to the magically-augmented contacts that allow him to see a Vampire or Lycan via an aura-like glow around their bodies. "Trust me, someday you will want to kiss the small, well manicured feet of Willow when these babies save your life. And they most certainly will."

With that out of the way Dawn could see again. Tying her hair back into a loose ponytail, she peered over the items spread out on the desk. Her greatest interest fell on the twin lightweight hand guns, newly designed for non-Slayer Watcher's Council operatives, were hers at last. "I'm really, finally gonna get to shoot someone," she almost giggled.

"Say that with a bit less awe, oh violent one." Coming around to the chair on the other side of her desk, Xander sat down, his hands lying palms down on the table. Sensing him in serious talk mode, Dawn sat up straighter, waiting for him to begin. "We're not Slayers or mystics or witches, D."

"Believe me, I know? Gotcha." She gave him the thumbs up. He was still serious with his whole lack of expression and so she lowered her hand.

"Do you really?" Xander questioned with no small amount of care as he adored her. Nonetheless, she needed to get this hardcore and blunt. "When I say that, I mean you'll see things you've seen before, like Buffy and Faith and Wills attacking the unholy heck out of anything in their way. But this time you're expected to fight with them, only you can't fight like them. You have to never lose track of that or you will see the inside of a closed coffin."

"How would I see the inside of a coffin if I'm dead. I'd think I wouldn't be seeing anything."

"Dawn, work with me here. I'm trying to be all Optimus Prime-like and inspire you." Lifting her hand in apology, he continued. "The first time I hit a vampire I thought my hand was broken. And the first time a vampire hit me I didn't get up until someone helped me up, and he didn't even hit me as hard as he could have. Now I know you've seen all of this for years and heard about it and even participated in some of our badassness, but now you have finished your training under Giles and I. You're ready to go out there full-time and kick demon ass. But I want you to keep in mind that you have to fight and defend the way you were trained, and not the way the Slayer's, witches, and mystics do. You have to always be mindful that they can take punishment you can't and so you have to be more patient and cautious."

"Patient and cautious. Got it."

Moving on, Xander held up a sixteen-bullet clip. "These bullets are split in two, as you well know. One half triggers the vampire virus in a vamp and effectively causes him to explode from the inside out. The other half is pure silver and will kill a Lycan with a single shot. But these bullets will also kill humans. Again, unlike the others we have to be very, very careful who we attack and how. Buffy knows how to hit a human and not kill him. But these babies," he pointed to the bullets. "They will kill whatever they hit. So we have a responsibility to be sure of what we are doing at all times."

Dawn loaded both her personal hand guns with clips, admiring the cool feel of each in her hands. She was finally ready. "Responsibility and maturity. I'm with you 100." She recognized his slightly nervous mood. Even before she turned all super-sized and the last two months after she became normal again he's trained her as well as he was trained in London for a year when the Watcher's Council was being rebuilt. He's turned her into a crack shot and helped her see how he's survived so long being just a normal person. "Were you scared the first time you fired one of these?"

"Well, mine is bigger," he joked, holding his larger gun. When she rolled her eyes he turned back to business. "I'm scared every time I fire my gun because I worry about a bullet ricocheting off something and killing a innocent person. Or a bullet going through a wall and doing that. I just try and stay focused on the task at hand and make the best choice that I can make. Slayers have the luxury of swords, stakes, and other medieval weaponry because they are so strong they can kill anything with them. They have the ability to take a ton of pain and survive almost anything, so they will fight a heck of a lot more reckless than us. We have to use everything around us to our advantage. We have to anticipate things faster, take things slower, and make sure whatever we fire at we intend to kill it."

"I understand." Having chosen this life for herself, Dawn accepted the responsibility that came along with it. She's in the best shape of her life and ready to follow in her sister's footsteps. "Go over the other stuff with me one more time."

Xander reached for a golf-ball sized glass object. One of several on the table. "Bright light flares. They'll blind virtually anything not wearing our eye contacts. Press the little button on the side and you have five seconds before they go off. Use them to save your life." Next, he pointed towards a small cache of square glazed objects. "Miniature explosives are our good friends. Andrew has built this tiny remote detonators. They're attuned them your watch. Just be very careful what you blow up."

"Don't blow up everything. Check," she smiled at him. It wasn't easy for him to see her about to finally go into battle and she was aware of that. He was the big brother she never had, and one of her closets, most reliable friends. He was also damn good at his job and when she made the choice to stay on at Castle Slayer and join the fight she wanted him to train her more than anyone else. "Can I say thank you without you getting all teary-eyed?"

"Considering I'm down to one good eye, don't expect all that much moisture." Joking, his best coping mechanism. "I know you're ready and I trust you with my life. I just love and worry about you, is all."

"I know, but look at it this way." She held up both her guns. "You taught me how to use these and if I accidentally kill someone its all your... okay, that sounded far more complimentary in my head."

"You think?" he laughed a little, sighing. "You're my Padawan and I just don't want to lose you to the dark side of the force. And deep down I know I won't. I'll just have to get used to dangerous Dawn and not just barely legal Dawn who's not so barely legal or innocent anymore."

"Yeah, I had sex. Lots of it. And I'm good at it too."

"That's far to much information. Now please, honor my final request. Please never, ever speak of your sex life again." Grinning, she rounded the table and wrapped herself around his upper body, smooching his cheek.

"I love you too. And I shall not ever again speak of the loads of hot, sweaty sex I've had." When he shuddered dramatically she declared, "Of course after finding you and Buffy asleep in your bed this morning I get the feeling there's some hot and sweaty sex in your future too."

"God, I certainly hope s... hey, kindly remove yourself from my slowly developing personal life." She hugged him again and then began loading her supplies in a duffel bag. "I'm going upfront. Try not to accidentally shoot yourself."

"Like you did once?"

"It was a minor flesh wound. And we will never speak of it again." Feeling as though he's done his best with her, Xander exited the rear of the plane, taking the short corridor where Faith, Willow, and Andrew slept in the dark of the cabin. Upon looking up he found Buffy exiting the pilot's cabin with a pillow in her hand. He pointed to their seats upfront, not wanting to wake up the others.

Thankful for a wee bit of privacy, Buffy settled in close to her almost but not official honey, warm and comfy. After a short pause he lifted his arm over her shoulder, nestling her against him. Affection was definitely of the good. "How's she doing and is she ready?"

"I think she's more than ready and she's doing great," Xander replied quietly, enjoying this newfound closeness with Buffy. It was going to take some getting used to, but this was progress indeed. "Dawn and I went over the important stuff and her memory is already five times better than mine. The bad guys better watch out. There's a new Summers gal out to kick demon booty and take names."

The words sounded nice, especially coming from him. But Dawn was her only sister and it almost bothered Buffy in some way her sister chose to come into this crazy life of hers. Of course she was impressed with how hard and dedicated Dawn went after here training. Unfortunately, this world she was about to dive head first into was cold and unforgiving. "She was in the best hands with you, so I'm confident she'll be fine. I just worry cause, you know, after mom died I have to look out for her. We're all we have left of mom."

Xander squeezed her closer. "You do a great job, Buff."

"Yeah, I think so sometimes. Other times I think she wishes anyone but me was her sister."

Drawing her closer, Xander pressed his face into her hair, inhaling softly. She seemed to laugh at the action. "I think that goes for most siblings at some time or another. It's time to face facts. Our Dawnie is now Dawn the grown woman."

"This new Dawn better stop banging Thricewise's."

"Oh low and behold, she went non-normal for her first sexual experience. Whoever did she learn that from?"

With his gaze upon her she felt a certain guilt all her own, although she knew her sister didn't have to make her mistakes. "Perhaps I could have been a better example, but she's a grown woman now. Its all her fault she was turned into a huge girl. I just want her to remain a normal sized, alive girl. Key word being alive." Whispering near his ear, she added, "Alive is my new thing too. I'm into heartbeats and guys who are sunlight friendly and can see themselves in mirrors."

Throwing caution to the wind, Xander reached under his chair and produced a small wrapped pastry. "What about a guy with a small addiction to Sara Lee cinnamon buns?"

It was as much of an admission as he was going to give her right now, all the more intriguing her. And it was sweet in a totally Xander-like way. Breaking off half the cinnamon bun, she ate it with a smile. "I am very pro cinnamon bun."

Using the side of his thumb, Xander tenderly swiped a bit of white glaze from the side of her lips, and in the half shadows of the cabin she was more beautiful than he ever thought a woman to be. Knowing enough about romantic movies to see a special moment when one was staring him in the face, he leaned in at the same time she shifted closer, their lips a breath away before...

A sudden jarring blast shook the the entire plane, barreling it into a hazardous roll that threw everyone around the cabin before the jet leveled off shakily.

Drawing herself up from the floor, Faith flew to the window looking outside. "We are so fucked. The right wing's engine is..."

"What, on fire?" Xander gasped, helping Buffy to here feet before checking on Willow as Dawn stumbled in from the back.

"No, gone!" Faith shouted, wrenching Andrew off the floor. Out the corner of her eye she caught the shadow of a massive dark wing... then saw the plane dip outside the way of a blazing burst of fire that flew right past them. "I think we have a dragon on our ass. An actual motherfucking Harry Potter looking dragon!"

"Let me get to work on it," Willow announced, shutting her eyes while summoning her powers.

Charging towards the pilots cabin, Buffy shoved the door open. "I think we have a problem."

"Understatement of the year, Ms. Summers." The pilot pointed to his instrument panel. "Our right engine is gone, we're leaking fuel, and whatever that thing is outside, its following us. We can't outmaneuver that thing and I doubt I'll be able to land. We're going to crash."

Holding onto the door with loud shouting behind her, Buffy felt the jet begin to nose dive towards the Mediterranean Sea. "I swear as soon as I fall for a guy, BOOM, POW, death's just around the corner!"

* * *

**The End of Chapter 1**


	2. Chapter 2

**Title: "Prey for Reign"  
Chapter (2/3) set in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight comic book universe.  
Written by: Shawn**

**Summary: As if barely surviving a harrowing fiery plane crash wasn't enough, the Scoobie Gang must contend with Willow's sudden loss of power, a mysterious betrayal, hidden agenda's, and an army of the undead when they arrive in Monte Carlo.**

**Rating: M for violence, language, and sensual situations.  
Category: Drama/Action Adventure/Romance **

**Characters: Buffy, Xander, Dawn, Willow, Faith, Renee, Giles, Andrew, and Robin Wood. Original characters as well.**

**Ship: Buffy/Xander**

**Timeline/Spoilers: The entire BtVS series and the first four issues of the new BtVS comic book for season 8. The entire "Long Way Home" series.**

**Email: Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns everything!**

**Authors Notes 1: Basic BtVS comic book universe knowledge for those who haven't read it is that the Scoobies are working out of a castle in Scotland and have rebuilt the Watchers Council with Giles in charge. There are about 2000 Slayers with 500 spread around the world. In my humble opinion there have been signs of a possible BX hookup in the future of the comic and I'm sort of exploring that here. With this story I hope to capture all that made BtVS so amazing. Drama, humor, heart, sex, action, quirkiness, and the characters we all know and love acting like adults for once.**

**Authors Notes 2: As the comic doesn't really place the year, although its supposed to be season eight, I'm setting the story in September 2007.**

* * *

**"No matter how bad things get, you got to go on living, even if it kills you." Sholom Aleichem**

**"There are good days and there are bad days, and this is one of them." Lawrence Welk**

**"Every survival kit should include a sense of humor." Author Unknown**

* * *

**A black Boeing Business Jet 2 **

**The Slayer's private executive jet, currently flying a 540 miles per hour.  
Thursday, September 27, 5:40 PM, 2007 **

**En route to Monte Carlo, but currently plummeting towards the Mediterranean Sea**

"WILLOW?!"

Hearing Buffy shout her name from the pilot's cabin didn't alter the undeniable fact that for whatever reason her magic was... gone. "I don't understand this," Willow choked out as the plane rattled violently, holding onto her seat for dear life after having tried several spells in the last two minutes. "I can't... I don't."

"We are so amazingly screwed." Shaking off Willow's unexpected powerless state, Buffy caught sight of the pilot doubled over the controls, now unconscious. "This really isn't a good time to pass out, okay? This is like the worst timing ever." Roughly shaking him, she saw no movement whatsoever. He was out like a light. What was worse, she just saw the dragon swoop past them for another run. "Xander, get in here!"

At the pilot's cabin in a second, Xander caught sight of the slumped over pilot. His survival instincts immediately took over. "Faith, get in here and take this guy to the back of the plane. Strap him and yourself into a parachute. Dawn, Wills, Andrew, prepare the other ones."

"Shit," cursed the other Slayer as the plane began rumbling badly.

"Here. Go!" After handing the pilot to Faith, Buffy listened to the sounds of fast moving footsteps while gasping at the sight of Xander now at the flight controls. "Please tell me you know how to fly a plane with one good engine and your one good eye?"

"Pun ignored, a little bit," Xander replied while trying to hail air traffic control in the area. He got nothing but static. "Piloting was part of my Council training in London."

"How did you do?"

"Uhm, I didn't finish. That's when I was assigned to Africa and all the badness there."

Buffy noticed the nerve-wrecking sight of thick gray smoke swirling from their damaged engine. "So how much of the training did you finish?"

"'Bout two weeks." Sparing a quick glance at Buffy, Xander swallowed hard. "Your panic face isn't helping."

"Would my scared outta my freaking mind face work better?" Strapping herself in the seat next to Xander, a blazing wave of fire criss-crossed the left side of the plane, narrowly missing the wing. Xander managed to level them out of a compete nosedive, rolling the plane back and forth in rapid succession, dodging two more of the dragon's fireballs. He was working with one good engine and a dangerous fire-breathing dragon hot on his tail.

Buffy complimented, "On a scale of one to ten, that was a two hundred."

"Just trying to do my best impression of Lando Calrissian," Xander quipped while throttling their remaining good engine as hard as he could towards the mainland, doing his best to create any distance between the plane and the dragon chasing them. Unfortunately the mainland looked entirely to far away. "FAITH?!"

"YEAH, WE'RE GOOD. LET'S BLAZE THIS BITCH!"

Using a hardcover book the pilot must having been reading before takeoff, Xander braced it under the control yoke to give them as much level flying as it could before they jumped. He took off after Buffy to the back of the plane where Dawn, Willow, and Faith were.

"I got the pilot strapped to me!" Faith yelled before wrenching open the boarding door, which sent blustering winds throughout the cabin. "Life jackets are by your parachutes. I'm out. And in case I never see any of you again, its been wicked fun. Pour out a little liquor for your girl, k?" With a daring smirk on her face she jumped out of the plane, descending so fast she was out of sight in a second.

Holding onto the wall for support, Willow watched Buffy and Xander strap themselves in while she took her position to jump. "Be careful guys. Stay safe. Sorry I couldn't magic us out of this, but something wacky is going on and I seem to be completely out of witchy mojo. I'm not sure..."

Rushing over to brush a good-luck kiss on her cheek, Xander made it clear, "I love you but this is no time to babble."

"Got it." Willow leaped from the plane, her red tresses flailing in the wind.

Dawn stepped in next, her eyes wide with fear as her hair blew about. "I wish I'd worn my jumping out of a burning plane outfit."

Despite the stark dread etched on her sister's face, Buffy sought to reassure her. Bracing her hand son her shoulders, she looked her square in the eyes. "You're ready for this, so do it. Don't think, just go!"

Gritting her teeth, Dawn jumped for her life, literally.

"Andrew?!!! "ANDREW?!!" Xander shouted towards the main cargo hold, catching no sight of the nerd/genius.

"Go! I'll be alright!" was heard from somewhere below the deck.

Not sure he could trust that, Xander knew didn't want to die and staying here any longer would make that happen. He met Buffy's determined gaze while she was attaching a backpack containing an inflatable life raft to her waist. "Ready?"

"Always," she noted, having made tons of jumps before tonight. "Oh, by the way. If you die we'll never have all the hot, sweaty sex I intend us to have in all those flexible positions I'm so good at. Later, Xan." Sending him a flirtatious wink, Buffy barreled out of the plane, flying as if she were born too.

"God how I love that woman." Wasting not another second, Xander leapt from the plane screaming into a 120 miles per hour free fall. Out the corner of his eye he saw a wave of gusting fire blast through the right wing of the plane, separating it, now nosediving towards the sea. Seconds later it exploded loudly, but through the rush of flames and smoking debris came the dragon sweeping downwards after him.

With no real time to think, Xander reacted to the threat. Shifting his body with his back to the sea, he only had seconds before he'd have to release his parachute, He somehow retrieved his firearm from his holster, firing wildly above him as fast as he could at the beast. Nine shots missed badly, but two shots hit their mark, striking the beast in its the face. The bullets tore stringy hunks of green scaly flesh as the creature howled painfully in anguish, swinging its massive wings around before disappearing in the night sky.

Barely able to breathe, Xander pulled the cord on his parachute, lifting him high when the chute opened. His descent speed slowed at last. He urgently scanned the area, catching sight of Faith and Willow swimming towards each other, while Dawn was making her way to where Buffy landed and was attempting to use the auto-inflate on the life raft. There wasn't any sight of Andrew yet, and that worried him greatly. What in the heck was he doing in the back of the plane?

Moments ticked by in a heartbeat. Hitting the ice cold water in a wild rush, Xander struggled to get out of his chute, then began swimming towards the bright light he was was sure was Dawn's signal flare. "No sharks, no sharks, no sharks," he chanted his wish over and over as he hated the idea of being devoured by a shark. It was his personal worst way to die.

"Glad to see you could join us," Buffy greeted her nearly official boyfriend, reaching for his hand to drag him on board the now inflated raft. It wasn't much for space, but it was a hell of a lot better than staying afloat in the sea's cold waters. Xander's constant chanting of no sharks amused her. "You okay?"

"Yeah," he quickly hugged her close, scanning the others as they were as soaking wet as he was. But at least they were alive. The pilot was still unconscious. "You? Everyone else?"

Buffy nodded gratefully. "Despite being soaked and freezing, we're fine. Where's the dragon?"

"I shot it in the face."

"I bet its good and ticked now. We'd better get to paddling out of here before it comes back."

"I don't see any sign of Andrew," Faith noted, looking out around them, worry etched on her face despite her best attempt to hide it. Dawn, Willow, Buffy, and Xander fell silent as they searched for any signs of their friend. Buffy lit another signal flair just in case he might be out there as everyone began calling his name as loudly as they could..

Brushing her damp hair aside, Willow tried again to summon her powers, only to find nothing at her disposal. "I can't use my magic to find him. But I know he can swim really well."

Catching sight of something moving in the distance, Dawn pointed north. "Look. That's a small yellow boat... I think."

A smile curling his lips, Xander was happy to report, "That looks like Andrew's hover chair. The little guy survived after all. I'll never critique his expense report again."

Upon reaching them the glass canopy over Andrew's hover-chair slid backwards, revealing a clearly shaken but very alive young man. "It seems you all survived. I guess I lost the bet I made with myself. Oh well."

"I could kiss you if you weren't so nerdy." Buffy teased. "I still might if you can get us out of here."

Pressing a series of buttons on his keyboard, the back-end of his hover chair revealed a strong steel cable. "I was able to save three backpacks full of our supplies in my trunk and I can drag the boat to shore," he was pleased to report. "Buffy, you can keep your kiss. It's appreciated though."

Had anyone ever not wanted a kiss from her, Buffy tried to remember, a bit insulted. Then she shrugged. Andrew was one of a kind. "Get to tugging, buddy. We've got mysteries to solve, bad guys to kill, and we have to find Willow's magical mojo."

* * *

**The Full Moon Casino **

**Private V.I.P quarters in the Upper Floor **

**Thursday, September 27, 8:30 PM, 2007 **

**Monte Carlo, Monaco**

The luxurious bedroom reeked of primal musk and the ethereal echoes of violent sex.

Adam finally rolled off of Eve, settling in beside her. The vamp-form his face was stricken with gently ebbed away, revealing his natural human features. Blood dripped from his fangs, while her neck bore the twin wounds of his passionate thirst. Dark red trails descended her lovely olive skin, staining the twisted white sheets. He delighted in her labored breathing, knowing all to well how her insatiable appetite would rise again shortly and he'd have to fuck her again.

Even harder... rougher than before as that's how she liked it.

Oh how he loved her ravenous hunger. It matched his own perfectly. Sex and power, they were so evenly matched in their ultimate desires. That he found his perfect mate in an accursed Lycan, the irony wasn't lost on Adam. As even their names were in harmonious sync, he found a completeness within his beloved Eve. One that he wouldn't sacrifice for anything... even his own life. "In less than forty-eight hours we will control the single most powerful criminal organization in all the world."

Writhing on the heels of a deliciously writhing orgasm, Eve hummed her approval while stretching her limbs. "Pushing up the cure exchange date to keep both sides on their toes was a genius stroke, my love. They will hate you for it, but won't risk missing out on the opportunity."

"We're dancing the razor's edge of death, dearest. We must stay one step ahead lest we fall into the abyss. The Werewolf Pride and the Vampire Nation will have less time to prepare their own betrayal, as we can be certain neither organization has any intention of letting the other leave alive. We will have them at our mercy, and when the time is right we shall strike a blow that will end hundreds of years of senseless war and finally unite our respective species against the common foe of humanity."

Adam's ambition captivated Eve to no end. She longed to be by his side on the day of his ultimate victory. A day that was coming very, very soon. "What of our plans for the Slayer?"

"The plane crash has already been covered up. Wolfram and Hart's loaner has departed the area, having completed it's task. Everything is proceeding as planned. We will soon have the worlds most powerful Slayer right where we want her. For now we must let all parties involved plot our demise while we manipulate the puppet strings. We're giving them all just enough rope to hang themselves with."

"At long last there will be an end to the seemingly endless war," Eve noted twisting her body along the covers, nestling closer to her lover. "Unity will breed success the likes of which neither Vampire nor Lycan has ever witnessed before."

"We shall disappear for five years," Adam noted, his vision focused on the ceiling and the future. "As the Watcher's Council have their taken time to reestablish its focus and how it will wage war, we must step back and give the impression of disorganization and mistrust of leadership. Then and only then can we reemerge united, deadly, and ready to face a world filled with Slayers. The Hierarchy of both the Werewolf Pride and the Vampire Nation will not like the what we have planned, but will come to see its ultimate fruition in time."

"A Lycan will never follow a Vampire, and the same can be said for your species ever following one of mine." Eve watched Adam's face turn cold, maniacal before her very eyes.

"True, and so a leader must have the power to reach and gain the respect of both species equally."

"And if one doesn't exist..."

Curling himself around her again, Adam sank his fangs into her neck, drawing deeply before whispering, "Then we shall simply create one."

* * *

**The Tulip Inn **

**9 Avenue Prince Pierre **

**Willow and Xander's hotel room **

**Thursday, September 28, 8:45 PM, 2007 **

**Monte Carlo, Monaco**

Concentrating hard on the task at hand, Willow slowly gestured over a paper cup while chanting a barely audible ancient incantation.

Nothing happened. Absolutely nothing.

Redoubling her efforts, she centered her mind and body. Focused and determined, her heart beat slowed to a crawl. Her eyes slipped shut as both her hands motioned over the paper cup. She set her will upon the goal of forcing her vaunted powers back to her. Chanting softly, her voice began to harden, her jaw wincing as the exertion began to take its toll until frustration swept over her and she backhanded the cup off the nightstand that separated her bed from Xander's. "Dammit," she swore under her breath, head bowed in defeat.

There was little in all the world that Willow Rosenberg hated more than feeling inadequate.

In reality, she's seen and performed such grand acts of magic that the notion of it being gone shouldn't come as a surprise. If magic made anything possible, life taught the same lesson. Still, her abilities had grown exponentially since leaving Sunnydale and the sheer magnitude of sitting here powerless has her a bit overwhelmed.

Xander's friendly warnings time and time again that she's grown to accustomed to using magic has left her dependent on it in ways she didn't want to face. Only now she has no choice. Admittedly, if she's parked at a stop light and it takes to long to change she used a spell to turn it green Or better yet, if she's pressed for time and no ones watching she'll simply fly. A new, exhilarating power she's become quite proficient in.

Tonight though... tonight has removed magic from her life. Has left her vacant of the power. And what's left could only be described as a very eye opening experience.

When the initial gathering process of the Slayers in the States was done the Scoobies relocated to London to begin rebuilding the Watcher's Council in a bold new way. Xander enlisted in the Council agents training program and never looked back. He went after the formal training offered with a tenacity none of them knew he had in him. He sought skills and worked hard to master them. Subsequently, Dawn followed in his footsteps. What they didn't know they were taught.

Faith and Buffy went their separate ways, but were there every step of the way when it came to deciding how the new Slayers would be trained, housed, led, and handled.

Willow's path took her to the Witches Coven and an even greater understanding and immersion in the world of magic and the occult. But tonight has shone a glaring light on how outside of magic she's lost touch with who she was and what she's capable of minus the dark arts. While almost everyone around her picked up skills that could never be taken away, she's trained in a world that depended on an outside source for power.

And if one was ever removed from that power they would be, in her heart of hearts, what she wanted to never become again.

Ordinary.

When did she lose her way? When did she begin to associate the very essence of who she was with her magic abilities? Where was the resourceful, brilliant book worm, computer geek Willow Rosenberg who's gifts were self taught and could never be taken from her?

That question had to be answered and soon.

Exhaling deeply when she heard Xander exit the bathroom while towel drying off his hair, she lifted her gaze his way with a careful smile. He graced her with the same. "I feel sucky."

Sighing as he expected this, Xander was pleased to note she wasn't going to try and act as if everything was okay. She wanted to talk, and for him, he would always listen. "How so?" he asked, seated across from her on the other bed.

"I'm... I'm not really sure. I mean I know why deep down, only thing is I just can't stand it." Willow shook her head, her hands resting in her lap. "I love being on the front lines with Buffy and the Slayers fighting the big bads. I'm not afraid of the fighting or the danger. I haven't been afraid of much of anything in years. And I know I am the same person I was yesterday, only now I feel..."

"Sucky?"

"Yeah, and weak. I feel small and weak and like I don't have anything to bring to the table. Hence the sucky feeling."

"Do you have any clue how many years I felt that way?"

As if a bucket of ice cold water had been dumped on her, Willow suddenly felt guilty. "Of course I do."

"And what did you always tell me?"

"Always wear clean underwear."

"Besides that."

"Doublemeat Palace burgers were gong to kill you long before a vampire would."

"Again, besides that," he smiled.

"That you were a invaluable asset to our team and that we believed in you." Lifting her eyes to his, she added, "We didn't say that near enough. Especially me." They fell silent for a moment. "It's only been a couple of hours and I can't seem to wear your old shoes."

"My feet are much bigger than yours." Moving to her bed, Xander sat beside her and swung his arm over her shoulder affectionately. "Part of me wanted and needed you guys to believe in me more and encourage me. But another part of me had to grow up and accept that I was who I was. If I wanted something to change then I had to man-up and change it myself."

"So you want me to Man-Up?"

"Woman-Up would be more appropriate, but yeah," he replied wearing a grin. "Look, you feel like minus your powers you're not yourself anymore. But you were spectacular long before you ever started messing around with magic. And you know we will move heaven and earth and everything in between to get your mojo back."

"And I know we will get it back, but I need to face facts. I haven't learned anything new about anything outside of magic since we left Sunnydale. I can't remember the last book I read that had nothing to do with magic. I have let technology pass me by. I can't even get my Windows Vista to work right to save my life."

"No one can, Wills. Don't judge your techno skills by a Windows operating system. But yeah, I get your drift."

"I must sound like the worlds biggest wuss whining about this."

"We all have our wussy moments. Its what you do during them that defines you. I could have had all the encouragement and sweet-talking in the world from you guys way back when, but if I hadn't set goals for myself and kicked my own ass to meet them I would have never changed how I saw myself. Maybe this is one of your defining, ass kicking moments. Feel the burn on your booty."

"Eww, but thank you." Leaning against her best friend, Willow added, "It's time I set some new goals outside of magic and stated going after them. Because what if I am permanently removed from my powers?"

"Wills..."

"No, seriously. What if that were true? Then where would I be? The answer to that question is within my ability to change. And I'm going too. I just need to remind myself of how I feel now so that when I get my powers back I don't fall into my same old magic-is-everything routine."

"I like the sound of that. Just remember I loved you long before you knew how to fly on a broom."

Willow poked in him the cheek. "Xan, witches don't fly on brooms. I wish that rumor would just die already. It's a false cliche we've been battling since the middle ages."

"Casper the Friendly Ghost and his cartoon show defy you." He earned that glowing Willow smile. She leaned over and brushed an exaggerate smooch over his cheek. "Better?

"Much. Thank you." Standing to her feet, Willow stretched her arms out in a relaxing pose. "I'm gonna grab a quick shower. Be back in ten."

Before the bathroom door shut behind her Xander was marching towards the one connected to Buffy and Dawn's room. She never heard him mutter a quiet, "Take your time."

Tapping softly at the adjacent door, no reply was exactly what he was looking for. Having known Buffy was taking her shower after Dawn, coupled with the door he heard shut a few minutes ago led him to the awesome conclusion that a naked, glistening under soapy hot water blond Slayer was showering only a few feet away. And with his status being unofficial boyfriend, it was his duty to insure her hot shower went as smoothly as possible.

Yeah, that made perfectly good sense to Xander.

He tapped against the door again with the back of his hand. Still no answer. Dawn's snack habit obviously got the best of her as she was probably off in vending machine heaven.

Woo hoo!

Gently turning the knob, Xander let himself in and found the room empty, although he heard the shower running. Two short strides had him at the bathroom, his heart pounding as he slowly turned the handle, opening the door just a little.

What greeted him was awe inspiring to say the last. The luscious steamy silhouette reflection in the mirror above the sink left his mouth watering. Of what he could make out, her figure was just delicious amidst the pillowing steam. He swallowed hard before he spoke. "Uhm, Buffy. In case you need your back done, or your hair washed, or had any trouble reaching the shower nozzle, or maybe just wanted a wee bit of company I just want you to know I'm here and available." God, could he sound any more horny? "So what do you say?"

Unfortunately for Xander, the Slayer's voice came from behind him.

"I'd say if you don't stop step away from my sister's shower I'm going to jam that door where the sun don't shine.

"BUFFY!" Xander quickly spun around, eyes wide open, pupils dilated. His hands lifted defensively. "I'd didn't... I thought that was... I didn't meant too..."

"HE WAS LOOKING, BUFFY!" Dawn shouted with glee from her shower. "AND HE LIKED WHAT HE SAW! CONFESS!!"

With the sound of her sister's roaring laughter ringing about, Buffy calmly shut the bathroom door and yanked her clearly disturbed future honey across the room. "Instead of fumbling an explanation we all know can be summed up by a severe case of the hornies, why don't you just relax," she noted wearing a amused expression. She held up a bag full of teeth-rottening goodies. "I did the snack supply run and now we have nearly half the vending machines worth of chocolate and candy products."

"It was an honest mistake, Buffy."

"I know."

"I only have one good eye. My depth perception is off sometimes. I don't always judge height well."

"Riiiight."

"I only wanted you to be in that shower."

"And I wouldn't have been opposed to you joining me," she leaned into him. When she winked a tortured groan was her reward. "Alas, you were caught spying on my little sister, who in many ways thinks of you as her big brother."

Xander shuddered. "This is ewww off the charts."

"Yes. Wallow in it. Soak up the ewww. And let it never happen again." He shuddered once more and then followed her to the bed. She shoved the bag at his chest. "We have Twix's, Kit Kats, Snickers, Hostess Cup Cakes, Peanut Butter Cups, Chocolate Raisins, Nutty Crunches, and Hershey's kisses."

Xander couldn't resist asking, "Let me have a kiss?"

"You already stole one of those, remember?" Buffy teased most cheeky, causing him to look away. He reached in and grabbed a handful of kisses, devouring them one by one. "Are you going to give me a kiss?"

Her tone was daring, as was the daring sparkle in her lovely hazel eyes. "I didn't know you wanted one so badly." Yeah, he mentally pumped his fist. Now that was a grown-up Xander flirtatious comeback.

"If I did you'd still be to scared to just come and take it."

Damn, she was good. But he couldn't let that pass. No matter how sexy she looked standing there with her hands on her hips. "I'm not scared of you." He bent down to her. "I'm scared of you."

Going over what he just said, Buffy tilted her head curiously. "Don't you mean me?"

"That's what I said."

"No, you said you weren't scared of me. You were scared of me. I think you meant to say you were scared of me, meaning yourself."

Thinking it over a moment, Xander scratched his head. "I said that."

"No, you said you were scared of me, meaning yourself."

"So I didn't say I was scared of me, meaning me, but of you, meaning you?" Buffy nodded. "Buff, its late and you're so beautiful and I'm just a one eyed man who's crazy about you."

"Then for crying out loud kiss me while I'm conscious."

The suddenness of his romantic attack was almost as shocking as the tender way his lips played over her, nibbling and brushing so decadently she was swooning in his arms. They drowned in a long, hungry kiss that was forever in coming. It wasn't that she's never thought of or imagined kissing Xander. Only that after knowing a man for so many years its rare if ever that a woman sees him differently after a decades length of time. But here she was kissing her best friend like it was going out of style, and boy did it feel good. Better than good. Mmmm, so very better than good.

Operating solely on instinct, Xander laid Buffy down on the bed, only they had to roll out of the way because she was lying on the bag of snacks. Giggling, they managed to get it right the second time around, but accidentally rolled off the side of bed when Buffy wanted to be on top. That didn't stop the kissing from growing passionately until they were tearing at each others clothes on the floor.

"Damn, y'all didn't waste no time. But don't stop now. This beats the hell out of wasting eleven bucks on naughty pay-per-view." Faith's voice drew them out of their heated embrace. Xander stood up, pants unzipped, shirt hanging out, his hair in disarray. Clearly hard and embarrassed. Buffy stood and turned away, still buttoning up her shirt, her belt on the floor. She was blushing like mad. "Oh come on. Just do it and let us watch. Its not like we're here to save the world or anything," Faith cracked.

"Don't make me stab you again," Buffy warned, half teasing.

"You want to get stabbed by the good Xander-pole. Well just remember I got there first, bitch." Buffy pretended to try and stab Faith with a Snicker before they began dueling with the other one, much to Xander's chagrin.. Willow and Andrew entered the room next, and then Dawn emerged from the bathroom brushing her hair.

Brushing past Xander, Dawn whispered. "Don't worry. I won't charge you for the peep show."

He shuddered again.

The gang swooped in on the snacks, spreading out over the two beds when a knock sounded at the door. Buffy peeked through the peep hole. The girl in the hall was about five foot seven, slender build, a heavy duffel bag hung over her shoulder. She had short, dark hair and emerald green eyes. Her regal facial features conveyed beauty to the fullest. Her looks perfectly matched the description she was given. "Ms. Howell?"

"Yes," came a reply. "Ms. Summers. Ma'am."

"Don't call me Ma'am. It makes me feel old." Buff opened the door, revealing the beautiful Virginia Howell. One of Robin's specially trained deep undercover Slayers. Clad in all black, she strode into the room and quickly caught sight of a very surprised Xander. "Fancy meeting up with you again."

"Jules?"

"It's my middle name. I know we didn't really get around to that in Africa. What with the killing, danger, sexing, and all."

Catching wind of Buffy curiously pissed-off expression, Xander knew things were about to get a whole lot more interesting.

* * *

While passing around photos and intelligence documents for Adam Masikroft and Eve Collins, Jules began detailing their enemies. "They are lethal and lovers, strange as that sounds. Both belong to their races governing body's, although I can tell they pledge their true allegiance only to themselves. I have witnessed them kill mercilessly. But don't mistake that for a blood lust where violence is concerned. At least not in Adam's case. He's is calculating and clever."

"Excuse me, Ms Howell?" Andrew interjected. "But did I hear you right when you said they were lovers?"

"A Vampire and a Lycan mating isn't a mental image you want to hang on to for very long, but yes."

"You can say that again," Dawn offered.

"The Full Moon Casino's security staff is mostly human, although all of the undercover operatives are vampires. And there are tons of them that cover the whole of the casino. In addition, there's a small army of the undead in the hidden lower levels. I don't know much more about them than that. The structure is as much a fortress as as it is a casino," Jules explained while handing out building schematics for the casino. "I don't know what room the actual exchange will take place in, but we will need to know because the casino is simply to huge to play guessing games with. In addition, the exchange is now taking place Saturday night." Everyone looked up when that news broke. "I think Adam expects treachery from the Vampire Nation and the Werewolf Pride. Giving them a new exchange date might throw them off. That's my assumption at least."

"I'd bet a years salary you're on the money," Faith noted. "If this Adam guy is as shady and smart as you claim he is then he's banking on a war breaking out. He can't possibly think those organizations are gonna play nice after hundreds of years of bloodshed. Those motherfuckers are going to kill everything that moves"

"There's more going on here than meets the eye, that's for sure." Xander went over the casino schematics with Buffy close over his shoulder. He felt Jules watching them. Having not seen her in almost a year and a half, she looked great. And they had a thing or two to hash out. Tragedy had to change a person. "Jules, what do you know about Willow being unable to use her powers?"

"Zenitha," was uttered with no small amount of fear. Jules looked to Willow and saw the same reflected in her gaze. "Adam has somehow employed a Witch Goddess. From what we know about her she's well over two hundred years old and has been killed more than twenty times. She keeps coming back from the dead. She just won't stay dead. And she's reportedly wearing a artifact called the Crucian that..."

"Erodes and blocks all magic in and around her," Willow finished in a hush. That artifact was one of the most sought after in the magic world. "But we were miles away when my powers began failing. How is she broadcasting the artifacts abilities so far away?"

Jules shook her head. "I don't know how she is doing what she is doing, but I do know where she is. Adam owns a massive luxury yacht called The Oracle on the back-end loading docks. Peer 9. It appears our witch likes being near the water."

"There's a reason for that," Willow thought out loud. "I just don't know what it is yet."

"Faith, take Dawn, Willow and Andrew. Kill Zenitha," Buffy stated. "We need Wills at full power A.S.A.P."

"Are the kids gloves on?" Faith asked as she was ready to rock and roll.

Buffy crossed her arms. "Do whatever it takes."

"Zenitha is very powerful and very unpredictable," Willow warned. "Going in all guns blazing will get you killed."

"That's why you're coming with us, Wills. Lead the way." Faith left the room with Dawn and Andrew to get prepared.

"As for the rest of us," Buffy declared. "We can't afford to wait for the exchange. The cures are the only thing that matter. We need to take over the entire operation and be ready to seize the cures as soon as the Werewolf Pride and Vampire Nation representatives arrive with them."

"So we're taking out the Vampire and Lycan version of Bonnie and Clyde tonight?" Jules joked.

"Exactly. We need to know everything they know."

"Its time to put the kids to bed, lock your doors, and tuck the elderly in all warm and snug." Xander stretched his arms out, standing up from the bed. "Looks like a wild night of gambling, murder, and intrigue is in store."

* * *

**"The Oracle"  
Adam Masikroft's personal 450 feet long, 7-deck yacht **

**Back-end loading dock **

**Friday, September 28, 12:15 AM, 2007 **

**Monte Carlo, Monaco**

"Man oh man, this is our lucky night," Roland rubbed his hands together, anxiously waiting for Marcus to razor the red lines into rows on the mirror so he could take a hit. Standing on the quiet loading area in the back of the massive luxury yacht, the two vampire guards oversaw the arrival of new supplies for the on board staff, and when the supply boat departed they were using the top of one of the two large crates to enjoy some recreational fun. "C'mon. Do a line and step aside. Its been a long night."

"Wait, motherfucker," Marcus warned with venom, his tattooed hand steadily forming six perfect lines of the red narcotic. "Copping this shit wasn't easy and I'm gonna take my damn time enjoying it." Leaning over the mirror, he quickly snorted an entire line, wincing almost painfully as the powerful drug took effect. "Fuck yeah, that shits good!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, just come on." Bouncing on his toes from anticipation, Roland vamped out, ready for his hit. The red lines were made of Sacred. Virgins blood blended in with pure cocaine and the dust of a dead vampire combined to create this horribly-addictive designer underworld drug. Vampires themselves didn't even care part of the ingredients was from their own kind. Nor did they care that to insure the virgin aspect of the blood, children were sacrificed for the drug to be made.

It made you feel like you could make the whole world burn.

Each having snorted a long line from the mirror, they were shocked when the other crate burst open from the side. "FUCK!"

Training her X-9 handgun, Dawn nailed Roland dead center in his forehead, a silencer muting the firing burst. A single holy-water embedded silver bullet killed the vampire instantly. His body slumped backwards in a heap of dust before it landed.

Faith swung around Marcus so fast before he could reach his gun. She drove her knife clear through his throat and then wrenched it sideways. Dark red crimson bled like a water fountain from him until the Slayer threw his body off the side of the ship. "Back decks clear. Get the nerd online."

Dawn tapped her blue tooth headset. "Andrew, we're on board. Wills, you there?"

"I'm here, D,"

"Me too," Andrew confirmed from his hover-chair, going over the yachts schematics. "Up ahead ten feet is the supply room. It leads to a corridor on the first floor. You need to make a right at the first corner and take the four flights of stairs down to the engine room in the bowels of the ship. Eww, I said bowels."

Faith holstered her sword from the crate, then placed her knife on her hip-slip. "We're gonna set our explosive on the engines cause if we can't beat Zenitha we gotta sink this bitch and sink it before she can get away."

"Remember, Faith," Willow interjected over the line. "The mystical artifact around her neck is the key. Get rid of that and I'll take care of the rest."

Checking the explosives in the black back-pack she wore, Faith added, "You had better be as bad ass as you claim, Red. Talk is cheap. I expect to see some some ass getting kicked all over the place. Just stand by. I'm about to stomp a hole in that witch's ass."

"Gotcha."

With that out of the way, Faith addressed Dawn before they entered the interior of the yacht. "I'm gonna make this real simple, D. Everyone in there is going to try to kill you. Kill them first. Don't hesitate. Don't let them see how scared you are. They're killers and you're dinner. Bottom of the food chain as far as those fuckers they are concerned. That's it. We good?"

Taking her last deep breath, Dawn squeezed both her guns. "I'm ready."

"Better be." With their backs to either side of the entrance doors, they snuck peeks through the small glass windows before entering the empty supply room. Another door showed the corridor ahead was clear. They hit it fast, weapons trained, senses alert. With their corner turn coming up fast they came across a small dining area that was well lit. Inside were six male vampires, all vamped and drenched in fresh blood, with three dead women at their feet.

Ready to get her hands dirty, Faith casually walked in. "Hey boys. Wanna party?"

The oldest vamp, gray tinging his hair stepped over one of the dead bodies as if she were nothing at all. He licked some of his victim's blood off the back of his hand, sneering at Faith. "I don't know who you think you are, but a lil petite like you couldn't hang with us. Then again, I'm gonna enjoy the taste of... YOUR BLOOD!"

The elder vamp leapt at Faith and was violently beheaded in mid-air when the Slayer slashed her sword high. Head and body hit the ground, bursting into dust immediately. "I sure hope you boys have more staying power than he did. I like my men to have some stamina."

The two vampires closest to the back wall reached inside their jackets, but Dawn cut them down in a hail of bullets before they could even reach their weapons, hitting both with chest shots that torched through them from the inside out when the holy water was injected. She missed a third vampire, who jumped onto a card table. Holstering her guns, Dawn ran towards him, then slid foot-first into the card tables wooden legs. One shattered as the table and vampire fell hard to the floor. He was up like a light, so Dawn rolled towards one of the shattered table legs and grabbed it.

The vampire jumped on top of Dawn, screaming, "I'm going to eat your heart, bitch!"

"I'm going to break yours first." Dawn shoved the sharp end of the table leg into the vampire chest, dusting it. She rolled away, watching Faith fight while monitoring the corridor.

Faith roundhouse kicked one vampire across the room, then ducked a wild punch from another. Grabbing his face with her hand, she shoved him back against the wall and kept battering the back of his skull into it until his head embedded in the wall. His body hung from the fit created by his crushed skull.

Not even turning around, Faith stabbed her sword backwards, impaling the last vampire. She spun on her heel and kicked him in the head so hard his neck fractured. A final stab through the back of his heart dusted the creature. "Good work, D. Way to get your John Woo on."

"I try," Dawn smirked, nodding towards the door. Faith took the point, leading them down the hall, making a right turn towards the stairwell ahead. So far so good. At this late hour most of the crew seemed to be off feeding just like the small group they came across.

Stopping on the fourth floor for a moment, they heard the idle chatter of a group of vampires about to get off the ship to go hunting at Monaco's night clubs. There was no need to pick a fight if it wasn't necessary, so Dawn and Faith let them go.

Upon reaching the engine room of the ship, Dawn quietly pointed out from her crouched position several vampires bitching about how boring guard duty was. Faith noted their positions.

"Excuse me?" Dawn asked innocently, her expression shy as the vampires all stood to full attention when they saw her. "I'm lost. Would one of you nice boys let me use your cell phone? I want to call my daddy so I can get a ride home."

The late hour drew their blood hunger painfully tight and so not a word was uttered as they stormed towards her fangs first. From behind her back she raised her twin guns and began firing, killing two immediately before the others took cover and began firing their guns at her. She quickly ducked behind a pillar near the back wall, returning fire while Faith took the long way around the engine room.

"SOMEBODY GET SOME MORE SECURITY DOWN HERE PRONTO!" yelled one of the vampires before the silver length of a sword tore through his chest. "Dammit!" He was dust a moment later. Whirling around, Faith ducked and dodged three crazy punches from a big, bald vampire before swiping the side of her boot and then roundhouse kicking the vamp. Her boot knife slit its throat from ear to ear. Another stab of her sword and he was dust.

Running now, Dawn barrel-rolled over two desks while gunfire exploded around her. She took cover behind one of the ships engines. Thinking quickly, she saw a large metal light fixture above two vampires firing at her. She concentrated and hit both wall bearings, causing the heavy structure to fall and crush the vampires. "Lights out."

Faith was staggered by a vamp that obviously knew how to fight. The bearded vampire knocked her sword out of her hand, and then went blow for blow with the Slayer, countering some of her best stuff with an impressive array of moves. "Great, I get the Jackie Chan of the vampire world."

"No, you get to die!"

"Someday," Faith grunted, parrying a lunging swing while sidestepping him until she was behind him. Whipping out a steel chain from her back pocket, she swung it around the vampires neck and viciously choked it until something broke in its neck. "But not today."

"Somebody might of heard the gunfire, Faith. We gotta move." The Slayer nodded and then handed her three explosive devices. Faith had the remote trigger. They went after each of the four engines, planting the devices where they would do the most damage.

"I'm done, D. Time to find Zenitha." Tapping her bluetooth ear piece, Faith asked. "Nerd boy, where's the head witch in charge?"

"Gotta be on the third floor. It's the only deck with one master bedroom and office area. And from the peer looks like some funky glowing light going on there. I'd expect mucho..."

Faith ripped the ear piece off and then stomped it on the ground. Dawn just stared at her. "I got enough voices in my head, D. You keep in contact with the B team. I got some witch killing to do."

"Lead the way."

Faith ascended the stairs faster than Dawn could keep up, hitting the third floor corridor. Instead of vampires she found a long hall and at the end a door with bright green light glowing from all around the edged.

Unfortunately between her and the door were a dozen of the undead. Bloodied zombies, their facial flesh rotting away, looking famished. Clad in worn, torn rags that had obviously seen better days.

"Oh great. Its the fucking Dawn of the Dead," Faith quipped before reaching inside her backpack. When the zombies saw her they began sprinting toward her, ravenous for her flesh. She threw two grenades in their direction. Both exploded upon impact, buckling the entire floor, shattering glass and dry wall everywhere. Severed body parts, massive amounts of splattered blood, and debris flew in every direction. The Slayer stood amidst the smoke as the door at the end of the hall slowly opened.

Shrouded in white whithering rags and a bloody hood covering her head, Zenitha smelled the foul soul of a Slayer. "Do you seek death this night, young one?"

"To tell you the truth I'd like a drink and a smoke. But yeah, your death wouldn't put a bad end to things."

Dry, stitched-together lips curled into a nasty smile. "I sense fire in you, girl. Now close your eyes and embrace oblivion." The Slayer ran at her, sword drawn. Zenitha sent a bolt of green electricity at her, slamming hard in to the Slayer's chest. Faith flew off her feet, crashing hard into the wall, her sword flung from her hands.

Feeling like death warmed over, Faith kept her eyes trained on Zenitha while listening to rapid gunfire behind her. Hopefully Dawn was holding her own. She'd worry if the gunfire stopped. "I'm gonna beat the unholy shit out of you."

"Unholy... what a compliment." Zenitha sent another bolt of electricity at Faith, but the Slayer pressed the detonation button causing a thundering explosion to rock the entire ship. With Zenitha knocked off balance the Slayer dove out of the way, grabbed her sword and threw it as hard as she could at the witch. The blade stabbed into the witch's chest. She smiled, "Stupid child." Her hands grabbed the blade as the silver melted into a liquid pooled at her feet with the handle hitting the floor. "Killing me isn't that easy."

"Good thing I wasn't aiming to kill you."

Suddenly Zenitha saw what was laying beside the swords handle. The dark, smoking artifact was cracked into three pieces. "MY CRUCIAN!!! NO!!!!!"

Faith crossed her arms, grinning as the entire massive ship began shaking violently, seemingly straining to not break in half. "That rock and roll ain't Aerosmith, baby. That would be the enigmatic Willow Rosenberg. And in the immortal words of the Rock, she's bout to Lay the Smack down on your candy ass."

The whole right wall tore open from the outside in a booming explosion of magic as a clearly levitating Willow descended inside the ship. "You alright, Faith?"

"Just get to the killing, Wills. I gotta go help D."

Zenitha growled loudly at her new competition. "I have heard of you, child. You pretend to be something you are not. But worry no more. Allow me to send you to HELL!"

Summoning her most powerful magic, Willow sneered, "Go for it."

The witches intense magic detonated in a wild swirl of brilliant light and blaring color as it seemed reality itself splintered around them, warping the very air itself. Zenitha's electricity burst from both her hands, while Willow shielded herself. The force of their exertion began literally tearing the ship apart.

Willow knew she couldn't fight this battle here with Faith and Dawn on board. When the entire upper floor, ceiling and all, ruptured in a deafening blast of debris that rocked the entire ship sideways. Zenitha flew straight up into the sky like a rocket.

Glancing over her shoulder, Faith saw Willow flying up after Zenitha. "Shit, I should of learned how to use magic."

Dawn shot one vampire directly in its mouth and then kept shooting until the one behind him died. Her heart pumped wildly as the fight went on, now with the undead as well. Faith was kicking ass behind her, breaking bones and dislodging fangs in a whirlwind of fists. Above them was... well, the sky. A good thirty or so percent of the yacht just wasn't there anymore. But high in the sky it looked like a violent, loud thunderstorm was taking place as Willow and Zenitha fought.

Suddenly one last loud sonic boom ricocheted in the heavens and then out of the clouds Willow descended slowly. The remaining vampires, seeing that Zenitha was no more dropped their weapons and ran for their lives.

Dawn holstered her guns. "I shall never doubt you again, not that I ever did."

"Thanks," Willow smiled before catching sight of Faith's very worried expression. "What's the what?"

"Look out over the ship in the water," Faith pointed. The ocean was alive with activity as far as the eye could see. "Fucking Zombies. Thousands of them moving towards the shore. More than we can fight. More than I have ever seen summoned before."

Willow's eyes darkened as the black magic around them affected her. "Zenitha must have used the last of her powers to call them. And she might be the only one that can show me how to call them off."

"Didn't you just kill her?" Faith questioned.

"Yeah, well, it looks like I have a bit of resurrecting to do. Excuse me." Summoning her power, gusts of wind zipped Willow back high into the sky.

Dawn reloaded her weapons, although she felt more than a bit worried. As the ship began to sink in a sea of the undead. "What do we do?"

"Fuck if I know, D. We gotta get our asses out of here. Just make sure you got a weapon. Get on the horn to Andrew. Tell him to blaze. We'll find a ride if we make it to shore. Tell him to get word to B and Xan A.S.A.P. Shit's hitting the fan big time."

* * *

**Taking place simultaneously**

* * *

**The Full Moon Casino **

**Upper Tier balcony overlooking main casino floor **

**Friday, September 28, 12:15 AM, 2007 **

**Monte Carlo, Monaco**

Now matter how hard they tried to blend into the fabric of humanity, Buffy could feel their presence caressing hr senses.

All of them.

Vampires.

Their vile hunger... their soulless existence... the way they moved like shadows in the dark, hunting in plain sight.

While gazing out over the vast main floor of the packed casino, Buffy felt the ethereal presence of nearly one hundred vampires. All dressed in civilian clothes mingling with their food. Officially they're undercover security personnel for the casino insuring the customers safety and the house not being cheated. But in reality they're blood sucking creatures just waiting for their next meal. She didn't need Xander's special contact lens to locate the undead. She could practically smell them.

She wanted to kill them.

All of them.

Her humanity had been tested time and time again in every way possible. She's always come out stronger because of it. But nights like this one, in the presence of so many vampires, the Slayer's primitive blood lust begged to be sated. A part of her would love to reach inside the black duffel bag by her foot, remove her scythe, leap the balcony and slaughter every single one of them. To kill until they were no more. But that wasn't part of the plan. And right now entirely to much was riding on the plan working.

Dressed in the black outfit of a Full Moon Casino security officer, Buffy waited for Xander to return from investigating the upper floor of the casino while Jules snooped around her supervisors officer for access to the administrative office area. If she wasn't back in fifteen minutes they'd have to break in. Their preference would be to sneak in unnoticed.

Buffy checked her watch. Faith, Dawn, Willow, and Andrew had to be at the docks by now. She'd hear from them in the next hour or so. No need to worry about that until there's something to actually worry about.

With literally hundreds upon hundreds of slot machines offering fortunes to the late night desperate crowd, Buffy considered going down their for a turn or two herself. Just for the heck of it. Or maybe she'd get a drink. She could use that. Alas, she's on guard duty until Jules returned. Footsteps approached her from behind. Familiar footsteps. "Do you know what I need right about now?"

Xander extended the small glass to her. When she turned around her smile was immediate. "A drink, perhaps?"

Taking it from his hand, she was once again reminded just how well he knew her. He had ordered her favorite. "Can you read minds now, Xan?"

"Nope, but I can sense restlessness and anxiety. Especially in you," he joked, moving to her side as they looked out over the crowd. "Plus I needed a drink too."

He had thought of her when he got one, which made her feel kinda special. His gentleman-like qualities impressed upon her. "We need a toast."

"Its late, Buffy. Toast is breakfast food."

Buffy blinked. "Uhm, that's not the kind of toast I meant." His expression went blank for a moment, offering no doubt in her mind he was mulling his options.

"I knew what you meant."

"You so did not," she laughed.

"Did too."

"Did not."

"Did too. And I'm taller, so I'm automatically right due to my gravitational superiority."

"Gravitational superiority? You have been hanging out with Andrew to long. I'm going to have to Un-Geek you," Buffy noted playfully, sipping from her drink. "We still need a toast." Looking away from her, Xander's silence complimented the suddenly serious expression he wore. "What's on your mind?"

He looked up. "You."

She smiled again. "I like the sound of that."

Turning his back to the crowd below, Xander leaned against the banister. "I don't want to play games with you anymore, Buffy. And for the record, when I kissed you awake, I was praying you wouldn't wake up."

His verbal admission at last. "Ouch."

"No, that came out wrong," he amended. "I meant to say I was hoping that deep down I..." And here it was, the truth despite all the years and everything that happened. "I'm in love with you." Her lovely hazel eyes grew soft before him. She rested her hand over his. "I've fallen in and out of love with you about three times," he laughed to himself, finally free of holding all of this in for so long. "Part of me never wanted to fall in love with you again. I wasn't when we left Sunnydale or even during our time in London. I've always been attracted you and that has never changed. But the deep and scary emotional valley, well, I had hoped I finally was able to hitchhike a ride out of there. But that kiss proved me wrong."

Fearing his reply, she just had to ask, "Do you regret kissing me?"

"No, only what it revealed. I never wanted you to know."

"Because you thought I didn't feel the same way?"

"You never have before. And that's not your fault, but it is a fact. I moved on from my feelings before and I was hoping it would happen again."

"Things are different now," Buffy declared as she moved him, now standing face to face. "I don't really know when or why I began having feelings for you, but they are real and significant. I'm done asking myself the same old questions I always do like am I relationship poison, why am I falling for you now, or will dating you ruin our friendship. I'm going to live in the moment and right now at this moment I'm kinda crazy about you," she confessed and was rewarded with his most endearing smile. "I'd like to be romanced by you."

"Done."

Her gaze just wouldn't let his go. "I want to romance you too. I want to date you and see what happens. I want to be your sweetheart... I haven't been that to anyone in the longest time. But I want to be yours."

So this was what Christmas morning felt like. Xander nodded. "So you're not promising me forever, right?"

"No more than you can promise it to me."

"And we're gonna date?"

"Yep."

"And kiss?"

"With tongue, yes."

"What about sex?"

"Often, hot, and soon."

Lifting his glass, Xander toasted against Buffy's. "That's worth celebrating." Throwing caution to the wind, he bent down to kiss her gorgeous mouth for the longest time, drowning in the delicious taste of her lips. This was either the best or worst idea either of them had ever had, but they had to see it through. And it felt wonderful. "If the fate of the free world wasn't at hand I'd so be out of here and..."

"In me?"

He moaned, "Naughty Buffy."

"You have no idea," the Slayer winked and then out the corner of her eye saw Jules waving them down from the ground floor. "Looks like its show time." Buffy grabbed her weapons bag, while Xander threw his over his shoulder. Thank goodness they were made of material that couldn't be x-rayed. "What's the what with your old Slayer pal?"

While descending the long red carpeted staircase, Xander explained, "Jules lost her Watcher and her sister in Africa. She was one of two Slayers left alive after the Kymen slaughtered their team of seven. I found her sobbing uncontrollably with her dead sister in her arms after the attack. I tried my best to comfort and counsel her on the life of a Slayer. She was close to being suicidal. It took a couple of weeks but we eventually developed a close friendship."

"Why do I get the feeling eventually it turned into a bit more? The horizontal type of more?"

"Cause you have a good feminine intuition."

"Were you two falling for each other?"

"Not really. She was still grieving and battling some real darkness by the time I left. But she continued working for the Council under Robin's watch. She must be damn good at undercover work to have snagged this assignment."

Crossing two long rows of slot machines and a couple of poker tables, they met Jules near one of the three sports bars near the center of the vast main floor.

Brushing her hair back in a comforting pose, Jules felt anything but. "I was able to get in my supervisors office, but he was there."

"Did you knock him out?" Buffy asked. "We need to get into Adam's office A.S.A.P."

Jules shook her head, trying to appear normal as guests walked by. "He was dead, Buffy. He was human and his throat was slit from ear to ear. What's even stranger is that most of the human security personnel are missing as well. Look." She pointed to the four entrances and the banking area for cashing in and buying tokens. "There should be three guards at each post, with at least twenty more walking the main floor at all times. And the security camera's aren't flashing the red dots. They're off. All of them. This isn't normal procedure."

Feeling the hairs on the back of his neck raise, Xander could sense a trap brewing. "Keep your eyes open. I smell a rat."

"LADIES AND GENTLEMAN," a bold voice spoke over the casino's intercom system, broadcast all around them. Buffy, Xander, and Jules found Adam Masikroft and his beloved Eve standing on the balcony above flanked by ten fully vamped bodyguards. "I regret to inform you all that tonight is the last night the Full Moon Casino will be in business. Sadly enough, your gambling needs will have to be satisfied elsewhere." Everyones attention was drawn to the man in the sharp jet-black suit. "I'm diversifying my financial portfolio, so the casino business isn't for me anymore. But you've all been so wonderful that I almost feel sorry you're all about to die." Hushed silence followed by intense worry. "I'm going to make this short and sweet. Vampires are real. I'm one of them. So are werewolves. My precious Eve belongs to that race. Anyway, I've locked all the exit's and I'm jamming all communications frequencies. Your cell phones are useless. At last count there are about ninety-seven human customers here tonight. Amongst you are fifty very hungry vampires. So kindly run, scream, and panic. The chase is part of the fun. Goodnight."

Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Buffy, Xander and Jules nervously peered around as many of the guests figured this to be some sort of joke. How could they take was Adam said seriously? That was until the first screams of agony roared out, followed by mass hysteria and a stampede of people rushing for the exits.

Only to be met by raging vampires tackling and leaping upon them, feeding crazily.

Chaos had begun!

Xander quickly tore open the bag by his foot. It took a split-second for to remove the scythe inside. He beheaded a vamp rushing in from behind. He spun upon hearing a single gunshot go off and found Buffy had fired on a vampire that had leapt on a woman's back, preparing to feed. They shared a glance, casually flipped each other their respective weapons, and then uttered, "Wrong bag."

Holstering his two handguns guns and a couple special items, Xander took the exit farthest away, racing toward at his top speed. A elderly woman nearly ran smack into him, with two snarling vampires raging after her. Shifting his weight around, Xander spun the lady behind him and then sent a barrage of special bullets at the vamps, dusting them instantly. He shouted, "Stay close behind me! I'm going to open that exit for you!"

"Dear God, what's happening?" she cried out as the screams around them grew in volume.

They were surrounded, with even more closing in fast. "Get behind that table now!" Xander yelled, catching sight of the elderly woman doing as told. He aimed over her head, firing at a small group of vampires who all dove behind a row of gold slot machines. Above them inspired a idea. He fired multiple shots at a crystal chandelier over their heads, raining a shower of glass over them. They sprinted out in the open, cursing his existence. He hit the lead vampire in the knees, crumbling him to the ground before he dusted. The others tumbled over his prone body.

Quickly reaching inside his pocket, Xander produced five silver marbles. He shook them hard in his hand and then threw them at the vampires. Upon impact they burst in a blaze of bright incendiary fire, torching all of them. They howled in pain, fleeing while on fire.

While reloading his guns, the cries of pain and as the massacre continued grew louder. "Its gonna be a hot time in the old town tonight."

Across the floor a female vampire barely had time to register the pool stick thrown through her heart before she was dust.

Buffy leapt onto of a poker tale and then ran and forward-flipped across five of them, slashing through any vampire that came after her. Ducking one wild kick, she sliced straight up his body, starting at his crotch. "Seriously guys. I'd bet on me." A roundhouse kick knocked a tall vamp off his feet into a double-slot machine. Rushing after it, the Slayer cut the arm off that attempted to punch at her. She was then tackled from behind by three vampires as they tumbled to the floor. Her scythe flew from her hand. She threw the vampires off of her, and then in a rage wrenched one of the slot machines clear off its floor base and smashed it into the them. Retrieving her scythe, they were dust in seconds.

Several more closed in on her position. Taking a fighting stance, she decided a different approach. Lifting her hand, they stopped dead in their tracks. "Really, guys. Do you know who I am?"

The vampires looked between them, scratching their heads, and then collectively shook their heads.

One bearded vampire considered, "You're a petite blond in a casino after midnight. I someone that looks like you in a cop outfit once in the tabloids. Uhm, are you Paris Hilton?"

"PARIS HILTON!!!" Limbs that turned to dust began flying in every direction as Buffy viciously dissected them until they were no more.

Bullets ripped apart the walls behind the vampires guarding the far exits, sending plaster and glass all over the place. Firing nonstop, Xander gave them no time to react, dusting as many as he could before ducking behind a slot machine to reload. Another handful of the silver marbles incinerated two more vampires that tried to creep up on him.

A third got a hard punch in before Xander could fire, knocking his guns from his hands. The vampire jumped at him, fangs bared. Bracing his feet on his attackers chest, Xander flipped him over his head.

Back on his feet, stake in hand, Xander lunged at the vampire who in turn lunged at him. The stake made the difference, dusting the creature. Extending his foot caused another vamp to trip that had been chasing a couple. A single bullet through its back ended its existence.

Suddenly... steps were racing up behind him... faster than he could react. Out the corner of his eye he was able to make out a vampire's blade aimed at his neck. He was as good as dead.

Except at the last second it was dusted out of the blue by Jules.

"You can thank me lat..." Jules stood frozen in place, her breath held tight when Xander rolled to his gun and fired directly at her... just past her ear, dusting a vamp behind her. She slowly turned around. The vamp was so close to her throat their was dust on her shoulders. "Good shot."

Not in the mood for compliments, Xander said. "Help me get that exit open. The only thing keeping the vampires from overwhelming us is that so many are feeding. We need to get as many people out of here as we can." Marching towards the exit through the crowds of desperate people, Xander shot in the air to scatter them and then fired at the locks. Chaos erupted as people raced outside as fast as they could. "Jules, get to Buffy."

She began backpedaling, her eyes focused curiously on him. "What are you going to do?"

"You'll see."

Buffy noticed the humans all running towards the exit where the gunfire was heard. Ironic, almost. As lives were saved the focus would now fall on them. Things were only going to get tougher from here on out.

Diving behind the curved sports bar, three axe-wielding vampires jumped over the counter after her. Dodging the wild axe swing of one, the Slayer severed both its arms with a sideways hack. Thinking quickly, she grabbed a bottle of Vodka, ducked another attack and then bashed the bottle over the vampires head, crushing its skull with her immense strength. It staggered to its feet before she staked it, and then the one trying to grab her from behind.

With the stake embedded in it's gut, she grabbed two bottles of wine and smashed both over its head. "Do you smoke?"

"Occasionally when I was human."

"Maybe you'll remember this. Here's a light." Stepping back, she shook and then tossed a single silver marble at the vampire. The fire ignited the alcohol covering its upper body. Having no time to waste as more vampires were closing in, the Slayer led them towards a center staircase. A vicious fight broke out. Brutal and no holds barred, with the Slayer battling as many vampires as came her way. Most were drenched in blood, having recently fed and wild with energy.

Buffy threw her scythe at one vampire, dusting him and the one behind him. Slamming her fist into another, she grabbed the back of his head and crushed it into a fifty-inch HD TV behind the sports bar. When the sound of gunfire grew close, she caught sight of Xander sliding down a banister firing both his guns, looking damn sexy. "You think you're a one-eyed Jack Bauer, don't you?" Her new boyfriend could only smile. "DUCK!"

Xander did as he was told. Buffy roundhouse over his head, breaking the neck of a vampire. In mid-kick he fired between her legs, dusting another. With too many closing in he handed one of his guns to her. The Slayer was a good shot, nailing two more behind him.

At one point they rose at the same time and fired over each other shoulders, gunning down five vampires combined.

"ENOUGH!"

Buffy and Xander kept their weapons trained on the vampires quickly surrounding them.

Above ground, Adam was clapping with Eve by his side. "I'm well aware of your abilities Ms. Summers. You are as good as advertised. The same for you, Mr. Harris. I was told you're very resourceful."

Xander handed Buffy another clip behind his back. "This was a trap, plain and simple. And since all our cards are on the table now, Jules, you might as well show yourself."

Smiling evilly, Jules walked from behind Eve, now standing between her and Adam. "You always had a knack for seeing things clearly. Sorry, Xander. But I'm tired of playing for the losing team. It was time for me to break out on my own and get something in return other than misery."

Buffy hated the idea of a Slayer turning rogue. Sadly, this wasn't the first time and probably not the last. "What did they promise you?"

"Immortality, power, and an army of my own," Jules confessed. "One where I'm not just a soldier sent off to die in a endless war, but the leader or a new organization to come that will rule this world beneath the surface."

Adam spoke next. "Thank you for doing exactly what I expected you to do, Slayer. Humans are so predictable," he boasted. "Now I'm going to show you something so amazing. Something our scientists learned about the vampire and werewolf species when the cures were created. Watch and tremble with fear as we rewrite all of our legacies with the first of a new breed."

To Xander rand Buffy's utter horror, Eve transformed into her werewolf form before their very eyes and then sank her razor sharp teen into Jules neck. Adam vamped out and began feeding on the other side. He slit his own wrist with his fingernail and dripped the blood into Jules parted lips.

"When next we meet," Jules voice trembled, her neck drenched in blood, her body convulsing perversely, "I will be the most powerful, unstoppable Slayer ever!"

At that very moment twin darts hit Buffy and Xander, knocking both unconscious to the floor.

* * *

**The End of Chapter 2**

**Final Chapter: All hell breaks loose... and I mean that literally!**


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